Equestria 101 – Explaining the Grid

"Why was he so adamant about saving the Grid?"

The former king Sombra looked at the closing portal with an expression of curiousity etched into his features. The elders had informed him that all Morphin Grids were practically pure energy and that no mortal being could safely traverse it without triggering one of many defences. Yet, the Midnight Blue Ranger had managed to open what appeared to be a stable portal and had leapt into what was supposed to only be a plane of energy. It was extremely mind-bending and, honestly, made his brain hurt in ways he didn't want to think about. The remaining Rangers were milling around the room, looking at the various consoles and out the window. Once, the thought that danger could be spotted by looking outside was extremely foreign to him. Now, he was fighting internally to not fall into the same routine. Noticing the questioning glances from the others and his daughters, he opened his mouth to clarify.

"The Grid should be able to purge the intruder with no problems. The only outlets the Grid should have are to empower any Rangers that draw from it. I don't understand why he needs to leap in and save the day. He could be doing more harm than good."

Princess Luna shook her head as she monitored the readings coming from the Grid. She had had doubts about the whole operation and had debated hotly with Billy all those years ago against the possibility that such an event would happen. She really hoped he had forgotten about that as she didn't really want to do that for an entire day. Pushing those thoughts out of her mind, she turned to her father and spoke softly.

"Father, the Grid that the Rangers use is much different than any other Grid. Whether by chance or an evolution of its original design, it has managed to tap into the Powers of several other Ranger teams and fully empower them for the duration of their stay."

Sombra flicked his tail impatiently. He knew that the Grid powered Rangers of all dimensions, irregardless of whatever power they were already drawing from their 'home' Grids. There was also a way the native Grid could be supercharged, though he had yet to see any concrete evidence for that fact having happened in Equestria. He doubted it would have happened – even with the immense power of the Ultra Rangers. Seeing his impatience, Luna shook her head and lightly nudged her father's side.

"I know this sounds like information you already know but it is much more than that. Due to the massive customisation the Elemental Morphin Grid has undergone, it has become so much more than just a simple Power Source. Let me see if I can put it into simple terms…"

She bit her lip and looked around the room, seeing if there was anypony who would readily object to being a part of her demonstration. To their credit, the other Rangers seemed nonplussed by the mental suggestion of their involvement and seemed to accept their 'roles' very readily. The Pink Ranger also pulled out a cannon from…somewhere and she had to think hard about what its 'designation' would be in her demonstration. Honestly, she had no idea if this would work, but it was the only way to pass the time. An additional plus was that she would be able to finally use the information on the Grid that Billy had told her about, implanting the small bits and pieces she had learnt from the other Rangers.

"All right father, let's say Celestia represents the Elemental Morphin Grid; an all powerful entity whose powers are only defined in the barest sense. Before the Rangers came into being, it was a network of natural energy and magics that bestowed its power onto all. With the Zeo Crystal augmenting the Elements of Harmony, the Grid powers the Equestrian Rangers but also takes on the 'slack' of powering other Rangers from the other dimensions. The best way I can explain the slack is that passing through the barriers is like placing pasta into a strainer…though that may bot be the best analogy. The majority of a Ranger's power passes with them in transit, but there is a very slight amount that drains off back into the Grid of their home dimension. Applejack, you experienced something when you crossed over?"

The Red Ranger frowned slightly at the word usage, before nodding once. She hadn't really thought about it the first time as she was trying to get used to being in another dimension with more Rangers than she could shake a stick at, but later visits had left her feeling…well, slightly weaker but at the same time, slightly stronger. Conveying that to the Princess, she wondered what exactly pasta straining had to do with the power that was lost. Oh well, maybe it was a Princess thing. Nodding at the words, Luna continued – even as a small spike momentarily appeared on the readout.

"The Grid has had to maintain and support the Powers of several Rangers of different Power Sources, which will be represented by Applejack. The first Ranger it had to deal with was Billy when he was using his original Power Coin. As it had been practically destroyed, it would not retain as much Power and, thus, had to be supplemented with a boost of magic from myself and Celestia. The second team is the Equestrian Rangers themselves. Even when one or more of them are in another dimension, the Grid continues to power them irregardless of whatever native Grid they are drawing from. In the case of the dimension of the Ultra Rangers, their Grid is much stronger than ours and causes the affected Rangers to simultaneously experience feelings of strength and weakness. It is a complicated issue and one I do not possess much knowledge in."

Sombra nodded once, taking in the information without a word. He guessed it hade some degree of sense to have the Grid continuing to power the Rangers even when they weren't in the dimension, but to have them powered by two Grids at once was…well; he wasn't sure what the term was but it was almost mind-meltingly inane. In theory, that would make them superhumanly strong as, no matter which of the Grids was weaker, the individual would be gaining the powers of two fully-powered Grids at once. That wasn't even counting all the other Power Sources out there that drew powers separate from the 'main' Morphin Grid. Shifting his hooves as he tried to understand everything, he nodded once for his daughter to continue.

"The third individual to draw power from our Grid was Billy's friend Jason during his rather unexpected stay in Equestria. As he was drawing power from an intact Power Coin as well, his power and morphed state was much weaker than Billy's had been. In fact, Billy hypothesised that Jason's power didn't fully stabilise from the dimensional trip until the 'evolution' of his Powers. The fourth group to draw on the Power were the Ninjetti Rangers from Billy's dimension when they had been freed of their enspelling and brainwashing."

Luna snuck a look at Celestia, knowing her sister was still not over the loss of Shining Light. Even though she had graced their lives for a short period of time, the young Earth pony's sacrifice was still acutely felt by all. The only movement from her sister to show she had caught Luna staring at her was a very subtle nod of her head. Letting out a short sigh, Luna shook her head and forced herself to relax. Thinking about the internal thoughts of her sister always made her mind throb with agony and she had no desire to be put through that kind of mental confusion again. Honestly, just thinking about her and Twilight was strange enough…but Billy had stated they hadn't done anything under that spell. Ah, that was another thing for another time. Taking a moment to compose herself and calm her mind, she spoke once again.

"Powered by the Ninjetti Spirits, they drew on our Grid and experienced a slight increase in Power. Indeed, our scanners revealed that when all of the Rangers present in the final stand against Zedd morphed, the Grid was given an incredible jolt of power from every Grid involved. It stands to reason that the energy may still be leeching out into the Rangers even now."

"But…that…but that makes no sense! There are only a set of very specific circumstances for a Grid to be charged like that! Only the native Rangers would be given the power boost and there is no direct evidence to assume that the Grids would be linked and would be leeching power! This is all pure speculation and conjecture!"

Celestia shook her head as Luna sighed in resignation. While it was true that, on a normal basis, their Grid shouldn't still be feeling the effects of the supercharge; the Grid in Equestria was so far removed from anything anyone anywhere had on record that it could almost be considered as a unique entity amongst Grids. Indeed, it was more or less the case with only the Ultra Crystal's Grid slowly reaching the same strangeness levels as theirs. She wondered exactly who had told her father this information; while it was technically accurate and true, there were many inaccuracies that even she could pick out. As Luna opened her mouth once more to try and argue her point, she stretched out her front right leg – effectively stopping her. As the Princess of the Night looked at her quizzically, Celestia smiled slightly and took over.

"Father, I understand there have been many things you have been told and, from what I understand, on many dimensions, these are proven to be correct. However, you must understand that it is not just the Power Rangers that draw from the Grid. If I am to be the Grid then Pinkie Pie represents the chaotic world of evil. The Grid that they tap into is just the barest skims on the surface. At this point in time, we are still not sure as to what Grid links Night Shade has, whether he draws energy from the Ultra Grid as well or if he runs on his own system. Frankly, as far as he is concerned, he is a giant grey area."

The Pink Ranger seemed to be momentarily put out at the thought that she represented evil but slowly nodded after a moment of thought. Fun chaos was still good but sometimes walked the thin line between good and evil. Well, chaos wouldn't walk or ooze as that was just a concept based on the highly theoretical principles of Order and Chaos, but if Discord was supposed to be the God of Chaos then it would stand to reason that there was a God of Order. Tapping her hoof to her chin, she wondered if Princess Celestia was the God of Order…or if it was someone they hadn't met yet. Ooh, maybe they would have to go on some kind of quest to free him or her from the grasp of evil! Blinking the thoughts out of her mind, for now, she listened to the Princess of the Day and wondered if she would be able to convey the information better.

"Also, the fact that must be taken into account is that the Power is in everything. Thr trees have it, the water and earth…and the inhabitants of this world. When certain ponies die, their energies are theoretically allowed into the Grid, meaning they will be still with us long after they pass from the world. Incidentally, there is no way for the forces of evil to use this energy as it is transmitted to the more neutral areas of the Grid. There is no telling how much power this 'reserve' contains or the information that it is…privy…to…"

Celestia's words trailed off as a sickening feeling of dread washed over her. Swallowing hard, she looked around the room to see if anyone else had had the horrifying realization. All of them looked the same; with the exception of Spike. The baby dragon was looking at the spot where Twilight had vanished into with wide eyes and the spines on his back were starting to shake slightly. As if he knew he was being watched, he turned his head back to look at her with wide eyes; eyes that understood what the overall plan was and desperately wanted it to be otherwise. Closing her eyes, she hoped that the spirits of those residing in the Grid would help her friends overcome whatever was in their path.

"Sister, are you all right?"

The voice shook her out of her thoughts and she opened her eyes, looking into the concerned face of Luna. Celestia smiled shakily and nodded slightly. Billy, Twilight and Rarity were strong Rangers with a wealth of power and experience between them. Surely, they would be able to deter the monster from accessing the information as the alternative…

Well, it was unthinkable.

TBC…