The Fireball Gazette

The Traitor’s Choice
Some rather unpleasant black power started seeping from his eyes and beard - it was Nalzagoth's essence, quite old and mean-spirited, sorry to say. Deva saw the trouble in him and tried her best to help by giving Matt some Future Sight, hoping to calm the raging sea within, eh? But Nalzagoth wasn't having any of it. He spoke - not out loud, mind you, but right into Matt’s soul. The god was quite dismissive of Matt’s mishaps and poured his power into King Valili instead, turning him into something rather terrifying: a Depth Dragon, a bit of a mess made of coral, scales, and ancient rage, eh?
Mad Matt, looking quite desperate, asked his dark patron for a bit of help. “I seek the secrets of eternal life. Let me serve you, eh?”
Nalzagoth paused, looking a bit amused, sorry. “Then you must join me in the conquest of mankind.”
As the coral throne started crumbling - pardon the mess - Matt tried to pretend he was resisting, just to lure the crew in close. But we knew him too well, eh? They all saw right through it, which is quite awkward, sorry.
With a bit of a grin, Matt used those shadowy tentacles to grab everyone. The coral dais split, and they were pulled down into the dark, eh?
Deva, looking quite upset, whispered, “I really should never have trusted you, sorry.”

Falling Into the Dark
The party fell through the blackness for what felt like ages - quite a long way down, eh? When they finally landed, it was in a massive chamber lit only by a faint volcanic glow. There was even a colossal pipe organ made of geothermal vents standing along the wall, all steaming and rumbling, which was a bit startling, sorry.
Mad Matt sat down on the bench quite gracefully, eh? His tentacles reached for the keys and he began to play - a rather eerie tune that echoed across the walls.
His eyes were hollow, which was quite unsettling, eh? The man they knew was just... gone, sorry.
Up above, the newly transformed Depth Dragon Valili descended, wings folded like kelping sails. And then, if you don't mind me saying, the final battle began.

The Battle of the Deep
Merlin was the first to move, and he was quite upset, eh? With a bit too much speed, he rushed Matt and struck him with a single brutal blow, shouting curses while trying not to feel too bad about the betrayal, sorry. Matt responded quite coldly:
“There is no good and evil. Only power, and those too weak to seek it, eh?”
He swung back with his blade, but as it struck Merlin, the barbarian’s wild magic kicked in, teleporting him away in a swirl of bubbles and starlight - much obliged, I suppose!
Meanwhile, Deva tried to make a whirlpool to catch the enormous dragon, eh? But Valili’s new form was just too strong. With a lash of his tail, he tore free and crashed into the pipe organ, making a dreadful noise, sorry about that.
Then he dove down, fangs bared, and bit into Tiyana - quite a nasty thing to do, eh? - nearly tearing through her. He followed up with a bit of a claw swipe at Merlin, raking through his armour, too.
Ainz stepped forward, lightning crackling from his jaws as he breathed electric fury at both foes, which was quite a sight, eh? He even summoned a draconic spirit to his side - Snivellius Saftkorn, sibling to the legendary Draco Malformed.
Since the Fireball magic wasn't working well in the dampness - sorry about that - Tiyana switched tactics. Channelling her deepest reserves, she launched dozens of Magic Missiles, pelting both Matt and the dragon with real precision, eh?
Selah, though quite angry, couldn’t reach Matt through all the chaos, sorry. She turned on the dragon instead. Only one punch landed, but it sent the beast’s head sideways, eh?
The battle just kept going and going.

Power Reborn
Valili blew a stream of pressurized water at Deva and Selah, nearly knocking them out - so sorry to hear that!
Merlin struck Matt once more - a bit of a deep cut, eh?
Matt collapsed… but death wouldn't hold him, much to everyone's dismay.
Some black energy from Valili slithered through the water and into Matt’s corpse. He rose again - this time nothing but bone and rot, his body held together by some rather unpleasant dark slime, eh?
Realizing he couldn't win a fair fight, he began hiding in the surroundings, sorry.
Deva, turned into a great shark - brave soul, eh? - caught the scent of blood and tore into the dragon’s flank. Tiyana kept up the missiles on Valili, too.
Selah, rising again, kept hitting that dragon's hide, eh?
Even though he was hiding, Snivellius could smell him, sorry. The draconic spirit shouted to Ainz, revealing Matt’s position. Ainz used Vampiric Touch to drain his strength and take away his cloak of invisibility, eh?
Merlin took the opening and slashed him down a second time, which was quite something.

Final Hour
The dragon, looking quite mad, perched atop Matt’s ruined body and let out a scream that shattered nearby stone, eh? He tore at Merlin with fang and claw, but the barbarian stood firm, even though he was quite messy with blood, sorry.
Deva - as an octopus now, how lovely, eh? - lunged forward and bit off one of the dragon’s wings with a single snap.
Tiyana poured what remained of her strength into another flurry of Magic Missiles, eh?
Nalzagoth, realizing the dragon was using too much of his power, decided to try one last gamble, sorry. Despite Matt's failings, the god funnelled all his remaining strength into his servant, reconstructing him into a skeletal monstrosity held together by shadows and malice, eh?
Selah saw her chance and struck him with a Flurry of Blows, cracking his skull, eh?
Matt hit back with a "Depth Charge," a blast of abyssal energy that knocked both Ainz and Selah down and turned Snivellius into salt - oh dear, so sorry!
Merlin, being quite defiant, plunged his blade into Matt again. Deva followed, slamming him with a flurry of tentacles, eh?
Matt started to falter.
Tiyana had the chance to end his rampage, eh?
He raised his sword at her with a trembling hand. “One last duel on your pirate’s honour,” he whispered. “You and me, sorry.”
Tiyana looked at him. “I’ve seen what your honour’s worth, eh?”
She raised a hand and the final Magic Missiles struck home.
And just like that, Matt’s bones were all scattered across the ocean floor, eh?

Aftermath
Nalzagoth’s power just sort of ebbed away, sucked back into whatever dark rift it came from, sorry to say. Merlin quietly gathered Matt’s remains and carried them to the base of the broken pipe organ. He buried him beneath the silt, planting Matt’s sword like a gravestone and putting his tricorn hat on top - a nice gesture, eh?
No one said much, which was quite respectful, sorry.
The crew swam upward.
Deva, with some help from the sea creatures, sent a message to the Nalua city: they weren't looking for any trouble, eh? They just had to stop that King Valili fellow.
Back on the ship, Marina welcomed them aboard, eh? Without any fanfare, they turned the rudder south - perhaps looking for some warmer weather?
The water grew a bit warmer, and things were alright again, eh?

Obituaries

In Memoriam: Mad Matt – Pirate, Warlock, Mutineer, and a Bit of a Cautionary Tale.

Mad Matt died as he lived: surrounded by a bit of chaos of his own making, fueled by ambition, and opposed by those who once trusted him, eh?

To call him a hero would be a bit inaccurate, sorry. Even before the dark touch of Nalzagoth, Mad Matt had long walked the line between leadership and tyranny. Charismatic, cunning, and quite dangerous, he commanded ship after ship with wild success and a bit of disregard for the lives under his flag, eh? Over sixty crewmembers perished under his watch - some to the sea, some to battle, and some to his own decisions, sorry. Few ever left his service alive, and even fewer left with their trust intact, eh?

His strength as a captain was undeniable, though. He could rally the broken and lead through storm and fire, eh? But his loyalty was never given freely, nor kept for long, sorry. His tales were tall, his victories often quite costly, and his greatest talent was always for surviving what should have killed him, eh?

Mad Matt’s final chapter was a bit of a disaster. Tempted by the promise of eternal life and the raw power of the Depth Dragon Valili, he turned against his crew in the deepest part of the ocean, eh? He struck a bargain with Nalzagoth, the Star Devourer, and attempted to sacrifice the very people who once trusted him with their lives, sorry.

He failed. And then he rose again - undead, consumed, and quite hollow, eh?
Mad Matt died three times. Only the last one stuck, unfortunately. He died not as a captain, not as a\warlock, but as a broken man seeking absolution in all the wrong places, eh?

Buried beneath the seafloor beside a ruined pipe organ, Mad Matt's sword stands upright, his tricorn hat resting atop the hilt, eh? A quiet grave for a man who never sought peace, only power, sorry.

He is remembered not fondly, but thoroughly, eh? A pirate in the truest sense - free, reckless, and ultimately quite unworthy of the loyalty he demanded, eh?