Chapter 2

Shinnok was lucky that the elder gods were distracted with the fallout of Shao Kahn's rampage. They had agreed that the tournament had proven to be a less than ideal method to find those worthy of protecting the realms. As they discussed among themselves, Shinnok left to the Nexus, a realm that connected the main portals of all the realms together. Shinnok entered this nexus to create an alter to gather all of the realms' kamidogu into one place. With them all in one place he could create what he truly desired. An amulet molded in the finest bronze and embedded in the center with an emerald gem. Engraved along the sides of the bronze were symbols for the four main elemental powers of earth, wind, fire, and water. This hinted at the amulet's true purpose; to drain the life energy of the realm's through their kamidogu. With the life energy inside the amulet, Shinnok would be able to wield the power of the One Being without risking the One Being awakening.
While the Shinnok plotted in secret, the elder gods have chosen to put an end to the tournament and have returned to simply looking out for a strong fighter with all the honorable traits that would prove their loyalty to the gods. The status of god was no longer allowed to be offered but a new, more fitting status was offered up: the status as the elder gods' champion. The Abacus had proposed a guardsman from the realm of Seido while Ourano requested a skeletal specter from the Netherrealm.
They weren't able to make their final decision, they received a plea from the Netherrealm. Lucifer had informed the elder gods that thousands of oni and undead had been escaping from their imprisonment. Raiden, Fujin, and Argus verified this claim by stating said oni and undead have been slaughtering innocents in their respective realms. The elder gods were baffled by these revelations and believed that Shao Kahn had done this as revenge for his demotion. They brought Shao Kahn and Onaga before them to interrogate them, but realized Shao Kahn had been unable to take any action while under Onaga's supervision. The elder gods turned their attention well known necromancers throughout the realms. Still, they did not find their culprit. Their suspicious turned into panic when Cetrion discovered that the life energy of the realms was being drained. She ordered the guardian gods to inspect their respective kamidogu and to her horror, they were missing.
That was when Shinnok finally revealed himself as the mastermind behind all of this. "I've grown tired of your excuses," Shinnok proclaimed. "You claim to take no action while actively selecting mortals to become gods. Mortals that have no right to the power they have been given. I will have the dead slay these false gods."
"You have gone mad!" Abacus shouted. "You have thrown off the balance of life and death! You have destroyed the order we worked so hard to maintain!"
"I am death!" Shinnok announced before holding his amulet high into the air. "And with this, I shall wield the life of the realms as well! If you are all incapable of maintaining order with these mortals and false gods, then I shall be the only order that matters!"
The emerald in Shinnok's amulet shined with the brightness of a star as it unleashed a wave of pure energy to knock all of his former allies down. All of them groaned in agony, but Zaggot had the strength to return to his feet.
"Surely you haven't forgotten," he said with a smirked, "an elder god cannot truly be killed, Shinnok. We will not fall to you so easily."
"I am no fool," Shinnok said before shooting another energy blast from his amulet to knock Zaggot down to his knees. "I may not be able to kill you, but I have a way to deal with you all so you pose no threat."
Shinnok held his amulet out once again, but instead of firing another blast five strands of glowing energy launched out and latched onto the elder gods. They could only struggle as these strands leeched on their power and sending it back into the amulet.
Shinnok laughed. He could feel his amulet grow in power and before he knew it, the energy strands returned to the amulet and disappeared. "I am now the only elder god."
With one final blast, Shinnok sent the rest of the elder gods out of the Heavenly realm and they ended up crashing down into Outworld. With the Heavenly realm all to himself, Shinnok took control. He made himself a throne to sit upon and a golden staff to act as both a symbol of authority but also as a device to hold his amulet. He allowed oni, demons, and other dark creatures into the Heavenly realm where they immediately bowed before his might. They would act as his followers and extensions of his will. They invaded the realms below, destroying any monastery devoted to the rest of his old companions to make way for his rule.
The guardians of the realms looked for any solution to fight back against the invading monsters. The guardian of Vaeternus used a sword called the Datusha, a blade infused with holy magic that could slay any unholy being in an instant. It was a useful weapon against Shinnok's horde, but the weapon had two downsides that made it useless in the long run. Slaying demons wouldn't matter for long since Shinnok's control over the dead could easily resurrect any fallen monster in an instant. Worse, at least for the vampires of the realm, was the weapons ability to purify the soul of the wielder. For anyone else, it would be a benefit in saving one's soul, but vampires required the darkness both physically and spiritually. The guardian of Seido forced many men and women to be drafted into the guardsman unit to protect the realm while enforcing the strictest of curfews to prevent any deaths at night, imprisoning anyone breaking the curfew. The Chaosrealm thrived off of the combat the invaders presented and used the ensuing chaos to fuel them with power. Unfortunately, the guardian of Zaterra and the guardians of many other realms were unable to withstand the unending waves of demonic invaders.
The elder gods could feel the end of the realms closing in and turned once again to the Dragon King Onaga.
"This is the second time you have turned to me to solve your problem," Onaga stated as he sat upon his massive throne. "I am the ruler of Outworld. A dragon! I am not your pet to beckon."
Cetrion swallowed her pride and bowed before the Dragon King with Abacus, Kronika, and Ourano mirroring her act. "We understand we lack the power to make you do this, Onaga," Cetrion said. "But please understand, all the realms are in danger, including Outworld. Shinnok could easily unroot the structure of the realms and destroy them as a result. Time will no longer pass, the dead will return to life, and space may no long exist."
"Your rule will be in jeopardy," Abacus added onto their plea. "If Outworld isn't outright destroyed, Shinnok could simply remove you from your throne."
"He has no right!" Onaga rose to his feet. He stomped over to the elder gods bowing at his feet. He blew air from his nose. "I shall face Shinnok, but it will be for my own reasons."
"But if we don't regain our power, we cannot restore the damage he has caused," Abacus shouted only to be silenced by Onaga's growling.
"You wish for me to restore you to your former posts?" Onaga leered down at Abacus. "You make even more demands from me?"
"Onaga," Zaggot stepped forward. "If you help to restore us, we will reward you."
Onaga turned his head, curious about the one elder god that refused to bow, yet is offering him a bargon. He blew air through his nose again. "I am the ruler of this realm. I have all the wealth and land any could desire. What could you possibly offer me?"
Zaggot showed no fear to the towering dragon. "We will give you Shinnok's amulet to enhance your power even more."
Abacus jumped to his feet and grabbed Zaggot by the throat. "You fool! You wish to give him the weapon that has caused so much destruction?!"
"I accept this offer," Onaga announced.
Abacus let go of his brother and looked up at Onaga in terror. "What?"
"I shall slay Shinnok and take his amulet for myself," Onaga said. "You will have whatever I leave behind."
"Agreed," Zaggot nodded.
With that, Onaga called upon a sorcerer to open a portal to the Heavenly realm before disappearing into it. The elder gods knew this bargain was a massive risk and that Zaggot would more than welcome the chaos that could follow, but desperate times called for desperate measures,

Onaga burned and clawed his way through a horde of demons. They were like paper compared to his strength and ants compared to his size. Even the larger blue oni could not pose a threat before him. Onaga stormed his way into the chamber of the elder gods to meet Shinnok. Shinnok was sat upon his throne similar to how Onaga would sit upon his own.
"So you are the one called Shinnok," Onaga said as he approached the throne. "Your companions have once again turned to me to solve their problem."
"I am well aware of who you are, dragon," Shinnok spat out. "You are just one of the many mortals the elder gods placed their faith in, gave authority to when you did not deserve it."
"I fought and bested Shao Kahn," Onaga proclaimed.
"A raging fool playing god!" Shinnok shouted. "Besting him is nothing to be proud of, mortal."
"I am a dragon!" Onaga roared out. His wings spread open and flapped. He flew across the room at lightning speed and swung his claw right at Shinnok.
Shinnok was prepared. With a wave of his staff, his amulet created a force field strong enough to hold up against Onaga's earth-shattering might. Shinnok rose from his throne and leered at the dragon.
Onaga growled at the elder god and bashed his fists against the barrier. Again and again, he struck the barrier but he couldn't break it. Shinnok held his empty hand out and from the shadows of the room, a large skeletal hand emerged. Shinnok swung his hand and the skeletal hand copied his movements, smacking Onaga away. Onaga used his wings to help his landing, staying on his feet. Shinnok summoned another skeletal hand and sent both flying towards Onaga in the form of fists, but Onaga was ready. He caught both fists in his palms before breathing fire down on the elder god. Shinnok kept his barrier up to block the fire. Shinnok aimed his staff at Onaga's chest and fired a blast right at him. Onaga was sent flying and crashing onto his back, the blast knocked the wind out of him but also left a bloody gash across his chest. Onaga howled in agony and rage. His attempt to rise up was stopped when Shinnok summoned yet another skeletal hand to grab onto the dragon to hold him down.
Shinnok stepped on top of Onaga's chest. "A dragon is mighty, but only to mortals," he said as he aimed his amulet down to the dragon's heart. "But to me, you are nothing but an ant."
Onaga let out one final howl in defiance, but Shinnok's amulet shot another blast into Onaga's chest. Onaga collapsed to the ground. Shinnok stepped off the dragon and opened a portal. With a weak shove from another skeletal hand, he sent Onaga back to his realm.

Onaga's body crashed down in his throne room. The elder gods were horrified to see the dragon king in such a broken state. Cetrion approached him. While Shinnok had drained most of their power, they had enough to perform small actions like healing. Cetrion used her remaining power to heal Onaga's heart and close his chest wound. From there, Onaga's holy men took him to truly restore his health and strength.
The elder gods' hope was once again crushed by Shinnok's effortless victories. They left Outworld and headed towards the realm of Edenia. They were immediately captured by those standing guard at the portal of the realm. Fortunately, they weren't executed on the spot and were taken directly to the guardian of the realm, Argus. Argus was relived to see his superiors alive, but was horrified to hear of Shinnok's fall to madness.
"Then we must fight him," Argus said with a clenched fist.
"No, Argus," Cetrion protested. "All of us lost our powers due to Shinnok's amulet and Onaga was nearly killed by it as well. You would surely perish if you faced Shinnok."
"You don't expect me to just stand aside as that madman's creatures slaughter my realm's people, the people of all realms!" Argus shouted at the elder gods. "Shinnok cannot be allowed to massacre us."
"But what can we do?" Abacus asked. "We lack the power to stop him and with each death he gains more power."
"Not to mention his amulet is draining to life force of the realms," Kronika added on.
Argus turned to Kronika, his eyes lit up with the hope they needed. "What if we made our own amulet?"

This chapter, outside of having one of the most interesting pieces of backstory in the MK lore, was a lot of new elements in this fan fiction. First of all, I've added some more dialogue and action sequences to it instead of just being a narrated overview of events. I think it will allow me to characterize people like Shinnok, Onaga, and more characters better, so let me know what you think of this change. One difficulty I had was trying to piece together all the most interesting bits about Shinnok's amulet.
I had a moment where I slapped myself upon checking the MK wiki. Apparently he had that amulet before his turn to evil and it was used to fend off the One Being. While that does upset me that it's not 1 to 1, I do think I worked well with my changes. The amulet was stated to have a connection with the Kamidogu in Deception, so I think it stealing the energy from them makes some sense. It also sort of plays off Shinnok's MK X ending where he awakens the One Being, but instead he's using the One Being's powers. Could lead to how he got that super mode.
Onaga sort of being an ally did put me off a bit, but I feel like there's a set up to a villainous turn as well. Also it sets up his interest in the amulet and even his heart being something with mystical properties.
If you have any thoughts or questions, let me know down below. I'd appreciate any discussion coming to my work.