Dusk, the Puppeteer
Maskwalkers · Village of Lu · Chapter 3, Heartless Remnants
Dusk, the Puppeteer is a Village of Lu boss in Phantom Blade Zero, met in Chapter 3, Heartless Remnants. Its enemy level on a first playthrough is 9. Beating it gives 16,200 Remnant Dust, Puppeteer's Bell, a Phantom Edge and Illusory Pipa Head. The game tells more of its story in Firefly's Memory Flower (6 scenes).
Dusk's story in the game
Memory flower
Firefly's Memory Flower
That catastrophe began in the gloom deep within the Discordance, yet it never ended with the ravings of madmen or fragments of broken texts. Now it hides behind a "Rift" in the Waking Realm, looming over the "Heart of the Lake."
I. Heart of the Lake
- Firefly
My name is Firefly. My Senior Brother Dusk and I have been working from within, trying to learn from the Herald how to enter the Heart of the Lake...
- Firefly
But then... the Acolytes arrived, and my link to him was severed.
- Firefly
Now... my time is running out...
- Firefly
Whoever finds this... look for the six Memory Flowers I left in the village... Their illusions will lead you to Dusk...
- Firefly
Please... help us. Destroy the Rift within the Heart of the Lake!
- Firefly
That Rift must never be opened... or all life will perish!
II. Phantom Art Illusionists' Settlement
- Firefly
Senior brother... I miss our settlement...
- Firefly
The Elders never questioned our past. They took us in without hesitation...
- Firefly
It was like a hidden haven. We practiced the Phantom Arts there, supporting and understanding one another...
- Firefly
Everything was so good... how did it become... this...
- Dusk
Junior sister... don't grieve. Once this is over, we'll leave it all behind... just the two of us... far from all conflict.
- Firefly
Mm! Alright! But somewhere warm this time... When this is over, we'll go south... and fill our yard with flowers...
III. the Herald
- Firefly
Senior Brother... is Master truly going to work with the Lady of the Veil's Edict?
- Dusk
Hmph... it's not just the High Elder. Even the other six masters agreed. Utter madness!
- Firefly
C-could this be a mistake?
- Dusk
Heh... a mistake? With all the ancient texts he's read? Impossible.
- Dusk
A prophecy of annihilation does not spread without cause. If that day comes... all we can do is......
IV. the Source of Calamity
- Firefly
The Elders ordered the ruins sealed. Anyone opposing the Rift is to be eliminated... so many of our junior brothers and sisters have already... already...
- Firefly
I... I thought maybe Master still cared for us... that he would let us enter the Heart of the Lake... so we could destroy...
- Dusk
Heh...It's useless. I already tried... but the old man refused to see me.
- Firefly
Senior brother...
- Dusk
Don't worry. I've found a way... The Herald may know how to enter the Heart of the Lake...
- Dusk
If I earn his trust... I can slip inside... and cut down those old fiends myself!
V. No Word
- Firefly
It's been fifteen days... and still no news. Not a signal... Senior Brother...
- Firefly
Didn't you earn the Herald's trust through your puppetcraft... and become the one overseeing the puppetry ritual?
- Firefly
Unless... the Herald has grown suspicious of us... or worse...
- Firefly
No... that can't be. The ritual is still proceeding as planned...
- Firefly
If it all went well... perhaps Senior Brother has already found a way into the Heart of the Lake...
- Firefly
What if he did leave a word... but someone erased it...?
- Firefly
If that's true... a powerful Phantom Artist may be behind this, trying to throw us into chaos before killing us all...
VI. the Acolyte
- Firefly
Senior brother Dusk, whenever you find this message...
- Firefly
I can feel it... the Acolytes have reached the village through the Discordance...
- Firefly
Fortunately, I discovered that wherever they go, they leave behind eerie scarecrows.
- Firefly
If I strike first and remove the talisman from the scarecrow, I can enter the Discordance and defeat the Acolytes...
- Firefly
Even if I fail... I can still buy you time...
- Firefly
Senior Brother... entering the Heart of the Lake and destroying the passage now rests on you!
About Dusk
Dusk, the Puppeteer
操偶师：荡秽
A puppeteer who defected from the High Elder. He wears yellow ritual robes and an ancient bronze mask set with scarlet eyes, its solemn appearance carrying an eerie menace. Using the Puppeteer's Bell, he commands puppet constructs and massive severed limbs to fight alongside him, and can summon doubles to confuse his enemies.
After hiding for so long in the puppet disposal pit, Dusk has nearly lost his mind. The broken bodies piled around him are discarded subjects from the Herald's puppet experiments, still carrying fragments of the villagers' consciousness. Dusk was ordered to cast them into the pit and leave them there. Their voices never cease: Save us, Master Dusk... Can we still be cured... Take us home... Their pleas cut into his mind again and again.
To stop the Lady's descent, he willingly underwent Transcension and feigned allegiance to the Herald. He promised the villagers he would create a medicine to cure the slumbering sickness. He and his junior sister Firefly had also promised that once it was all over, they would find somewhere warm and tend flowers together... Yet this is what became of them.
Consumed by guilt and Sha-Chi, Dusk begs Soul to end his life. With his last shred of clarity, he burns away what remains of his body and reveals to Soul the horrifying ritual of the High Elders.
What beating Dusk gives
16,200 Remnant Dust
Illusory Pipa Head
Where to find Dusk
Village of LuChapter 3, Heartless Remnants
Engine Giant RemainsTerracesSmuggler's Treasure CellarSmuggler's Tunnel EntranceThe Lady GroundsStatue Grounds EntranceSurvivors' CourtyardBlack Serpent HouseZhang's Hideout (Village of Lu)Temple of Blue FirefliesCovered BridgeBroken Puppet Pit BottomBroken Puppet Pit EntranceWell of the Three PuppetsOld Man Gen's HideoutMandate Encampment Outer GateYoung Master Lan's HideoutCrossroadsPlace of AwakeningBeneath the WellHidden Passage to PangzhenPuppet Testing Grounds
Dusk
Nearest bellBroken Puppet Pit Bottom, 38 m away
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