
Thousands of years ago, Shinnok existed as an Elder God. The Elder God are true rulers of all realms. They watch as worlds are created and destroyed and govern the realms with untold eons of wisdom. Shinnock, however, gave in to greed and illusions of false power by the new realm of Earth. If he could have that realm to himself, he would have power unmatched. He first would have to face the young god of thunder known as Rayden, who was appointed as Earth's guardian by the Elder Gods themselves. Their battle for the realm of Earth was fierce; causing the planet's near destruction and plunging it into centuries of darkness. Rayden soon discovered that Shinnok entered the realm through the powers of a mystical amulet. It allowed Shinnock to enter the realm without challenge and keep Rayden stripped it from Shinnok's possession. With the aid of the true Elder Gods, he banished the fallen god into a place known as the Netherealm. Rayden buried the amulet deep within the mountains of Asia. He then created a massive temple within the mountain to house the amulet and appointed four guardians as the protectors of Shinnok's sacred amulet. Each guardian represents one of the four elements that make up the realm; Wind, Earth, Water and Fire. As long as the amulet remained on Earth, Shinnok would be trapped, forced to remain dormant for the rest of eternity.