MMPR: The Wax of Cowardice

Courage falters when fear takes root. Zack the Black Ranger’s strength crumbles as darkness exploits his greatest weakness, turning resolve into helplessness. A desperate attempt to escape leads to a cruel twist, leaving his teammates paralyzed with shock.

The flame grows, and fear spreads.

Special thanks to my loyal and royal patron friends:

Nicholas Athallah

Jakob Feurhuber

泽凯 张

vladimirpootis

Tribe

A

Bethany

kasa41

Violet Fentenstine

Tuck Lee

Matthew Thom

fumitsu

kasa41

俊介 星野

にとり 河城

Russell shuey

Bayu Pramana

clanna

park jong

Dominic Kohtz

George Hellerman

Flutterheart10480

brkfstinamerica

darkrai1986

시우 성

Nathaniel Grayson

's 쭌

John Barten

Eddie Hauck

Ken K

Ty smith

Robert Terwillger

snb

Daniel K

Mike020578

Even courage melts away!

“BILLY!”

Jason’s delivery broke with pure horror, watching as the light behind Billy’s visor flickered, dulled—then disappeared entirely. His friend—the smartest among them, the one who could have saved them—was gone.

Kimberly screamed into her helmet, her fists trembling at her sides. “WE HAVE TO STOP THIS! WE HAVE TO SAVE HIM—JASON, PLEASE!”

Zack’s breath shuddered, his expression hoarse. “Billy—Billy, wake up, man! You can fight this! You’re the smartest guy we know! YOU HAVE TO FIGHT THIS!”

Trini stepped forward, her fingers outstretched, as if reaching for something she knew was already lost. “Oh my god—oh my god, he’s—he doesn’t even remember—”

Zedd let out a long, satisfied sigh, taking a step back to admire his work. His visor gleamed with twisted delight as he gestured toward the wax-bound shell that had once been Billy.

“Marvelous, isn’t it?” His words was mocking, cruel, chock-full of victory. “The boy who thought he could outthink me… now reduced to merely burning wax.”

Jason’s entire body shook, his grip on his Power Sword trembling with unfiltered rage. “You… you—MONSTER!”

Zedd’s head tilted slightly, amused by Jason’s anger. “Oh, Jason… dear, dear Jason…” He stepped forward, lowering his tone into something dark, intimate, poisonous. “You keep saying that word as if it will change the outcome.”

Kimberly’s breathing hitched, her entire frame trembling. “We have to stop him. We—we can still stop this—”

Zedd laughed, slow and deliberate. “No, my dear Pink Ranger. You can’t.” He gestured toward Billy’s waxen, frozen form, his body still locked in its perpetual loop of suffering. “There is nothing left of him. Nothing. The spell has erased him completely.”

Zack took a step forward, his expression shaking with fury. “That’s not true! Billy—Billy, I know you can hear us, man! We’re your friends! Come on! We need you!”

Billy’s head twitched slightly. The melted, broken voice behind the wax attempted to speak. “Fffrrr… ffffrrr…”

Zack’s heart leaped into his throat. “YES! YES! SAY IT, BILLY! WE’RE YOUR FRIENDS! SAY IT!”

Billy’s waxen fingers twitched. His tone strained, distorted. “Frrrrrr… ffffrrreee…”

Jason felt a surge of hope. “You’re free! You’re still Billy! FIGHT IT, MAN!”

Billy’s words twisted. The word—that final cry for help—collapsed into incoherent groans. “…Ffflllaaaaame…”

The candle’s wick burned brighter. The wax hardened again. Billy’s form froze completely once more.

Jason’s breath left him. Zack stumbled backward, his entire body shaking. Kimberly let out a strangled sob. Trini turned to Zedd, her words a sharp, broken whisper. “You killed him.”

Zedd chuckled. “No, Yellow Ranger.” His visor glowed deep, ominous red. “He’s still here.”

Billy melted again.

And the nightmare continued.

***

Zack’s breath came in harsh, uneven gasps, his fingers clutching his Power Axe like it was the only thing anchoring him to reality. His legs shook violently—not from exhaustion, but from something deeper, something worse. From fear. The battlefield had become a graveyard, a nightmarish prison where every movement felt like dragging himself through thick, drowning sludge. He could feel it wrapping around his chest, his heart hammering so hard he thought it would burst from his ribs. His grip faltered. His resolve crumbled. This wasn’t a battle. This was slaughter.

His teammates still stood firm, their weapons raised, their bodies braced in defiance even as grief suffocated them. Jason’s stance was one of a man who had already accepted his fate. Kimberly’s hands trembled, but her bow was still locked and loaded, ready to fight until her last breath. Trini’s daggers gleamed with a quiet, smoldering fury. They still had something left. They still had a will to fight.

Zack had nothing. No courage. No strength.

His eyes locked onto Billy’s warped, melting figure. The blue wax pooled and twisted into grotesque shapes, reforming over and over again, his muffled, incoherent wails seeped through the thick layers of his prison. Beside him, Tommy’s waxed-over form stood frozen, his mouth locked in an eternal scream, his agony preserved like a cruel monument. Zack felt something inside him splinter.

He took a step back.

His teammates didn’t notice at first, too focused on the horror before them. But Zack could feel it—the pull. The urge to turn, to flee, to pretend he had never been here at all. The candles had already stolen Tommy. Billy. And now? Now they were coming for him.

Then, it happened.

Tommy’s frozen head twisted toward him.

Zack’s stomach lurched violently. It shouldn’t have moved. It wasn’t supposed to. The wax should have held him still, kept him trapped. But Tommy’s visor was staring right at him.

Billy’s twisted, melting body shuddered. His head tilted too far, his wax-covered arms twitching, his lips trying to form words that no longer made sense.

Then, they both spoke. Together.

“Zack…”

Zack’s body jerked backward violently, his heart hammering against his ribs. The wordss were wrong. They weren’t pleading. They weren’t angry. They were empty.

“Zaaack…” The sound stretched, warping as though the wax itself was speaking.

His hands shook. His whole body refused to move, yet he kept stepping back.

Tommy’s frozen mouth stretched wide. Billy’s warping face tilted unnaturally.

“Run.”

The word slammed into Zack’s chest like a fist. His breath came in erratic, panicked bursts. He took another step back, then another. He couldn’t do this. He couldn’t stay here. They were already gone.

Jason turned sharply, his voice cutting through the static ringing in Zack’s ears. “Zack! What the hell are you doing?”

Zack’s voice came out broken, uneven. “I—I—man, I can’t—I can’t—”

“You can’t what?” Jason’s tone boiled over with rage. “You can’t fight?! Is that it?!”

Zack’s fingers twitched around his axe, his grip loose, useless. “They’re—they’re gone, man! They’re gone! They’re right there, but they’re not!” His breath shuddered, tears burning behind his visor. “You don’t get it, Jase! I don’t feel anything anymore! I don’t feel my strength—I don’t feel like a damn Ranger anymore!”

Kimberly’s voice broke. “Zack, don’t do this.”

Zack took another step back.

Jason took a step forward.

Tommy and Billy’s waxen figures lurched.

Zack turned and ran.

“ZACK!” Jason’s words ripped through the battlefield like a gunshot. “DON’T YOU DARE RUN!”

Zack didn’t stop. He couldn’t. His feet pounded against the ground, his body moving on pure instinct, on the one thing left in his mind— survival. His axe was useless. His team was doomed. There was only one thing left to do— escape.

“ZACK, STOP!” Kimberly’s scream barely registered, drowned beneath the roaring panic in his mind. He was done. He was done!

Then, the ground shook beneath him. A monstrous roar erupted, shaking the air itself. RoboGoat.

The beast leaped between him and his team, slamming its hammer into the earth. The impact sent Jason, Kimberly, and Trini sprawling backward, their screams lost in the chaos. RoboGoat had cut them off completely.

There was no one left to reach him.

And then—Zedd appeared.

Zack barely had time to react before a crushing force slammed into his back.

His breath exploded from his lungs as he crashed forward, rolling against the dirt. His Power Axe skidded out of reach. His body twitched, his limbs refusing to obey as he struggled to crawl. His muscles locked. His fingers clawed at the ground, trying to drag himself forward.

Zedd’s shadow loomed over him.

“Running away?” Zedd’s delivery was smooth, darkly amused. “I expected better from the so-called warrior of courage.”

Zack’s chest rose and fell in frantic bursts, his breath coming in painful gulps. “I—I wasn’t—I just—”

Zedd stepped closer. Towering. Unstoppable. Absolute. “Liar.”

Zack’s body refused to move.

Zedd sighed. “Cowards deserve punishment.”

Before Zack could beg, scream, anything—

The black candle appeared.

Zedd raised it slowly, letting the wick twist into a sharp, burning spike.

Zack’s body thrashed violently. “NO—NO, GET AWAY FROM ME—”

Zedd’s hand gripped his waist, pinning him.

Zack screamed.

Then—the candle plunged into him.

Right into his rear.

His back arched in agony, his mouth ripped open in a scream so raw it barely sounded human. His fingers clawed at his own body, thrashing, convulsing, muscles spasming uncontrollably as molten wax flooded his veins.

His rage exploded. But he had nowhere to send it.

He lashed out at himself, his fists hammering his own body as if he could somehow break free. The wax kept crawling, consuming, dragging him down into an abyss of mind-melting agony.

His body locked in place.

His mind shattered. Everything melted.

***

The black candle burned atop Zack’s helmet, its eerie flame casting flickering shadows over his slowly hardening waxen form. The wax had swallowed everything—*his muscles, words, and ability to move—*yet inside, his mind still screamed. But his screams were breaking apart.

"NO—NO—NO! I AM THE BLACK RANGER! I’M ZACK TAYLOR! I’M—I’M—" His own name caught in his throat, melting like candle wax dripping down his spine. His words slurred, tangled, twisting as if his very identity was warping.

"Jason! Kimberly! Trini! Billy! TOMMY! CAN YOU HEAR ME?" Zack’s voice burst out of his throat, cracking into frantic, breathless yells. He fought, struggled, tried to hold onto the names, the memories. But something was squeezing them out, drowning them in hot, searing wax.

"J-Jay… Jass… K-K-Kim… K-Ki… NO, NO, NO! I KNOW YOUR NAMES! I KNOW YOU!" His words slurred again, his words cracking, the syllables barely forming.

Jason heard him—but he couldn’t reach him.

"ZACK! HOLD ON, MAN! WE’RE COMING!" Jason hacked through the battlefield, Power Sword clashing against RoboGoat’s massive hammer. Sparks exploded as the weapons met, but RoboGoat didn’t give an inch, refusing to let them past.

"He’s—AAAGHH!—STILL ALIVE! WE HAVE TO GET TO HIM!" Kimberly’s tone trembled as she dodged a crushing blow, flipping backward before firing an arrow. It struck RoboGoat’s shoulder, but the beast barely flinched.

Trini was desperate, hacking wildly with her daggers. "HE’S TRYING TO REMEMBER! HE’S STILL THERE! ZACK, WE’RE COMING! HOLD ON!" Her delivery mangled into a choked sob as she saw Zack’s wax-covered hands twitch, reaching out for them—before freezing again.

"F-FORGETTING… CAN’T… FORGET!" Zack tried to shake his head, tried to move, but the wax was locking him in place.

Zedd’s laughter rumbled across the battlefield, slow, pleased, delighted. "Oh, how delicious! A warrior fighting to keep his mind, yet every memory is melting away—drip, drip, drip! Keep struggling, Zack. It only makes the final moment that much sweeter!"

"I’LL KILL YOU, ZEDD!" Jason roared, slashing his Power Sword in a wide arc, but RoboGoat intercepted, hammering him back into the dirt.

Zack was still fighting. Still screaming.

"MORPHIN! IT’S MORPHIN TIME! D-DRAGONZORD! NO—NO, THAT’S NOT—THAT’S NOT MINE—MAMMOTH! PTERODACTYL! T-TRICERATOPS—WHAT—WHAT COMES NEXT?!" His own roll call was failing him.

The wax inside his skull was eating it all.

"IT’S MINE! I KNOW IT! I KNOW IT! T-TY… TY—TYYYY—NO! IT'S T-TYRANNOSAURUS?! S-SABERTOOTH?! S-STOP—STOP TAKING IT FROM ME!" His voice broke into raw agony, his body convulsing in a futile effort to escape the spell.

His mind was unraveling.

He forced his memories back—his first morph, his first battle with the Putties, his first time fighting Goldar. He could hear his own laughter, the jokes he made, the way Jason called him his best friend— but then the memories slipped, dissolved, twisted into nothing.

"NNNHHH! MY HEAD—MY HEAD IS MELTING! IT’S ALL GONE—IT’S ALL—IT’S ALL MELTING!" Zack’s screams turned guttural, feral, his breath ragged as his thoughts shattered like glass.

Kimberly was crying now, her bow shaking in her hands. "PLEASE—PLEASE STOP HIM! JASON, WE HAVE TO STOP HIM! HE'S STILL IN THERE!"

Jason gritted his teeth, trying to fight through RoboGoat, but the beast was merciless, keeping them at bay.

Zedd’s laughter only grew. "Fascinating! So much resistance, so much delicious suffering! His mind is burning, and soon his body will follow—ah! Look at that!" Zedd gestured toward Zack’s helmet. "The candle is working perfectly. Now watch as it finishes its beautiful purpose!"

The black flame atop Zack’s head flared.

His torso slumped. His arms drooped. His helmet sagged.

"NO! PLEASE! PLEASE! I CAN STILL FIGHT! I CAN—AGHHHH!" His waist collapsed into liquid wax. His legs followed, dissolving into an oozing mess, pooling around his own feet.

His teammates screamed for him.

"ZACK!" Jason’s rage exploded. He drove his Power Sword forward, but RoboGoat slammed his hammer down, sending him crashing back.

Zack’s screams were warbled now, distorted, barely human. "N-NGHHH! MY BODY! IT’S—IT’S MELTING AGAIN! PLEASE—PLEASE, SOMEONE HELP ME! I CAN’T—AAAAAAGGGGHHH!"

His arms liquefied, the wax pouring down, his chest caving inward as his torso slumped into a bubbling pool. His mouth warped, stretching into a grotesque, frozen scream.

Zedd sighed with satisfaction. "Beautiful. Absolutely magnificent. Such a fine centerpiece this will make in my throne room!" He tapped his staff against the ground, his red visor glowing with sheer victory. "Perhaps I’ll place him beside his dear friend Billy. Or maybe I’ll arrange them all together, forever locked in their final screams!"

Jason, Kimberly, and Trini thrashed violently against RoboGoat’s blockade.

"WE WON’T LET YOU WIN!" Jason slashed forward, desperation taking over.

"LET HIM GO, YOU SICK MONSTER!" Kimberly screamed through gritted teeth.

Zack screamed, but it didn’t matter. The wax was pulling him down again, dragging him into a liquid prison of agony, his body slumping as the molten substance bubbled and oozed over his form. His arms drooped, his chest caved, and his legs folded into the melting mass at his feet. His own body was betraying him, no longer solid, no longer his. His helmet sagged, his visor warping, stretching, the blackened wax covering every detail of his face until he was nothing more than a puddle of himself.

Then, the flame flared atop his head.

And the pain returned.

The searing heat sank into his skull first, burning through every thought, every remaining trace of who he had been. His name, his identity, his victories, his friendships—all of it bubbled, melted, and dissolved. He fought against it, screaming into the abyss, but the wax clung to every part of him, clogging his memories, suffocating his thoughts, leaving him drowning in the boiling void of his own mind.

“AAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH! NO! NO, PLEASE! IT HURTS! IT—IT BURNS! I CAN STILL FEEL IT! WHY WON’T IT STOP?! WHY CAN’T I—” His tone mangled, warbled, his words slurring together as the wax thickened around him.

Jason stumbled forward, his body aching from battle, desperation fueling his every movement. “ZACK! WE’RE—WE’RE STILL HERE! WE’RE TRYING!” His words was raw, frantic, but Zack couldn’t hear him anymore.

Kimberly shook her head violently, her bow trembling in her hands. “This isn’t happening. This isn’t—this can’t be—” Her voice broke into a ragged sob, her body frozen in place even as her instincts screamed at her to move, to fight, to do something.

RoboGoat lunged again, hammer slamming against the ground, keeping the Rangers back. The force of the blow sent Jason skidding backward, knocking the wind from his lungs.

Zedd’s words boomed with cruel amusement. “Yes, my dear Rangers… watch, as your friend is reborn into the beautiful masterpiece I’ve created for him. Watch, as the cycle never ends!” He gestured toward Zack’s crumbling, melting form, his delivery thick with mockery and triumph.

The wax lurched back upward.

Zack’s arms rose first, stretching unnaturally as the liquid hardened into place. His chest followed, his torso snapping back into its previous form. His legs reformed, locking into their frozen stance. His helmet solidified last, the melted, warped visor returning to its rigid, lifeless state.

The black candle remained atop his head, its flame flickering hungrily.

He was whole again.

But inside, he was already gone.

He could still feel the wax inside his skull, crawling, seeping, burning away the last traces of himself. There was nothing left to hold onto. No past, no future. His thoughts struggled to form, but the wax simply devoured them, dragging them under before they could even take shape.

“NOOOOOO! MY BRAIN—IT’S STILL BURNING! I CAN’T THINK—I CAN’T—” His screams distorted, warped, became unintelligible.

He tried to call out again, to say something, to say anything, but his own words slipped away before they could leave his mouth.

Jason’s chest rose and fell in shuddering gasps. “Oh god… oh god, no…”

Kimberly covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes wide with horror. “He doesn’t even know who we are.”

Trini stepped forward, her knees nearly buckling. “This—this isn’t real. This can’t be real.”

Zack’s helmet twitched. His hands flexed. His muscles stiffened and locked into place.

He felt everything.

He was aware.

And worst of all, he knew it would happen again.

The flame above him flared once more.

Jason surged forward in desperation. “ZACK! YOU HAVE TO FIGHT IT! COME BACK TO US!” His Power Sword glowed in his hands, ready to cut through the spell, ready to do anything to save his friend.

RoboGoat intercepted, crashing into Jason’s side and sending him sprawling into the dirt. He barely had time to react before the hammer came down again, forcing him onto the defensive. Every step forward was met with unrelenting force.

Kimberly released arrow after arrow, her hands shaking so badly she could barely aim. “GET AWAY FROM HIM! GET AWAY FROM HIM!” She wasn’t even trying to hit RoboGoat anymore—she just wanted Zack to hear her, to know she was still there.

Trini rushed forward, her daggers drawn, but RoboGoat’s massive hand caught her by the collar, lifting her off the ground effortlessly. She kicked, screamed, thrashed, but the beast didn’t let go.

“LET ME GO! LET ME GO! I HAVE TO—HAVE TO GET TO HIM—”

RoboGoat hurled her back. She hit the ground, gasping, her entire body aching.

Zedd sighed in satisfaction, watching the battle unfold with pure delight. “Ahh… music to my ears. The cries of the helpless, the agony of the broken. Look upon your friend, Rangers. He’s still here. He’s still aware. And he is never, ever coming back.”

The flame above Zack’s head flared even hotter.

Jason’s face twisted in rage. “NO—NO, NOT AGAIN!”

Kimberly’s scream was raw, shattered. “ZACK! ZACK, PLEASE! PLEASE FIGHT IT!”

Trini was sobbing now, the weight of the horror finally breaking through her composure. “MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE, MAKE IT STOP!”

Zack melted again.

And the loop began anew.

The black candle burned steadily, flickering in cruel mockery of what had once been a Ranger.

Zedd simply chuckled, his tone low and satisfied. “How tragic… and yet, so exquisite.”

Jason felt his hands trembling. He had never felt this powerless. He had never lost like this. This wasn’t a battle. This wasn’t something they could fix.

Zack was lost.

And now, deep in his bones, Jason knew the truth.

It was only a matter of time before they all joined him.

But he wasn’t Zack anymore.

Jason swallowed hard, dread crawling up his spine. He could feel it now. The finality. The horror. The unstoppable fate that awaited them all.

They were doomed.

***

Zedd snapped his fingers, and the battlefield quivered as dark energy swirled around the three wax figures—Zack, Billy, and Tommy. But before they could vanish, before they could be taken to their eternal fate, their mouths lurched open, warping, stretching, muffled but agonized screams spilling from within.

Jason, Kimberly, and Trini stiffened, their hearts hammering in their chests. The sounds didn’t belong to statues, to lifeless wax replicas. These were real, desperate wordss, still alive, still trapped inside their melting prisons.

“JASOOON—HELP ME! I CAN’T—IT’S TOO HOT!” Zack’s gurgled screams twisted into a garbled, suffocated wail. His wax-covered hands shook violently, twitching in a futile attempt to move, to break free, but he was locked in place. His helmet was deformed, sagging, bubbling, his entire body pulsating as if the wax itself was trying to consume him completely.

Jason choked, stepping forward, his arms trembling. “Z-Zack…?”

Zack’s warped face turned toward him, or at least, what remained of his visor. The wax pulled and stretched as if he was trying to blink, to cry, but his face was nothing more than a grotesque, melted shell.

“I CAN’T THINK! IT’S ALL GONE!” Zack’s muffled cries broke into a raw, helpless wail. “WHO AM I?! WHAT’S MY NAME?! JASON, PLEASE—PLEASE, JUST SAY IT! SAY IT AGAIN! I DON’T REMEMBER!”

Kimberly covered her mouth, her knees buckling. “Oh my god…”

Zack’s body twitched violently, spasming against the waxy prison encasing him. His arms jerked as though he were trying to reach out, to hold onto something, anything that might stop the endless erasure of his mind.

“SAY IT! SAY MY NAME! SAY SOMETHING! PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE! I CAN’T REMEMBER! I CAN’T REMEMBER ANYTHING!”

Billy’s distorted voice cut through next, agonized, fractured, his intellect shattered under the endless torment.

“MY MIND! MY MIND IS—IS BURNING—IT’S ON FIRE! HELP ME! HELP ME, PLEASE, SOMEONE, JUST SAY ANYTHING—SOMETHING I KNOW! I DON’T—I DON’T KNOW WHO I AM!” His screeches turned into panicked babbling, pieces of words, equations, jumbled nonsense trying to form into something familiar but failing.

Trini sobbed, shaking her head. “Billy—Billy, it’s okay, you’re—You’re the smartest guy I know, you—”

“I WAS—WAS I?! WHO AM I?! WHAT’S MY LAST NAME?!” Billy’s head jerked back, his melted, wax-covered glasses fusing into the grotesque sludge of his form. “TRINI—KIMBERLY—HELP ME REMEMBER! I— I KNOW YOU! I KNOW YOU! BUT I DON’T KNOW WHY!”

Kimberly was so close to madness, unable to breathe through the horror clawing at her chest.

Tommy’s voice came last, hoarse, nearly broken beyond recognition.

“JASON—” The name came slow, hollow, barely a whisper beneath the thick wax encasing him. His body sagged, the slowest of the three to move, but his suffering was no less.

Jason felt his throat tighten as Tommy’s words crawled into his ears.

“Jason… why… why didn’t you save me?”

Jason stumbled forward. “T-Tommy, I—I tried, man, I—”

“I DON’T REMEMBER ANYTHING ANYMORE…” Tommy’s visage twitched, his wax-laden mouth barely able to move. “I can’t— I can’t remember what my parents look like. I can’t remember where I grew up. Jason, please—just tell me something. Anything. Tell me who I am.”

Jason’s face crumpled as he let out a shattered sob. “You’re my best friend.”

Tommy’s entire body jerked at the words, as though something inside him still recognized their meaning. But it didn’t last. The wax tightened, constricting, pulling back over his barely-formed mouth.

“Then—then tell me again. Please. Please. Say it again before I forget it too.”

Jason reached forward, his fingers trembling. “You’re my best friend, Tommy, you always have been, just hold on—please, just hold on—”

The black flames atop their helmets flickered.

The wax grew tighter.