Night shined down upon the Tree of Life. Within the twinkling stars, the moon stood out most of all. The moon could tell many stories, namely of its two deaths. Though it was left unexplained, the moon had vanished one day, exploding in a vast display of light. When that day occurred many years ago, the animals had assumed it was some sort of ill omen, but oddly the moon eventually returned as if by magic. It turns out this wasn't the first time the moon had vanished, and it had returned just the same.

Mysterious circumstances aside, there were many stories within the world, even ones that were not yet ready to be told. It would be some time when the greatest story would be told, of how a lion with a scar would arrive at the Tree, bringing with him a mighty roar. That lion would become the tree's greatest protector, and eventually, its king.

But that was another story. The real story was being told within the tree itself.

Underneath was a vast chamber. Most wouldn't expect it, but the chamber was the home of the Night Pride, the protectors of the Tree of Life. Within the chamber were three lions, an elderly female, and two small cubs. The cubs chased each other around, laughing and playing as they attempted to overpower each other. The old lioness smiled as she watched the cubs play. Her eyes intently followed the little ones, her smile fading as the female cub cried out. The male had bitten the female more than likely out of play, but he had bitten too hard apparently.

"Baliyo!" The lioness chastised.

The young cub winced and held his head low, "Sorry Grandmother Janna," Then looking towards the female, he added, "Sorry Rani."

Suddenly, the female shoved Baliyo with a smile, laughing and showing there were no hard feelings. It was true sibling behavior at its finest.

Smiling again, Janna smiled towards her grandchildren, "All right children, time to settle down."

The two cubs were her few remaining family members, since the death of her mate, eldest son, and daughter-in-law. There was also her younger son Surak, and Nirmala. Although Nirmala was not officially family, being a wanderer who joined them by chance, she was a member of their Pride all the same.

Settling down near their grandmother, Rani and Baliyo gazed up at her, "Grandmother, we want to hear a story," Rani asked.

"Yeah, a story, a really good one!" Baliyo piped up.

Janna chuckled at her grandchildren's eagerness. Storytelling wasn't an uncommon task in her role as a grandparent. Rani and Baliyo loved her stories and she had plenty to tell.

"Very well children, which one would you like to hear?"

"Tell us one we've never heard before," Rani requested.

"Yeah, a real scary one!" Baliyo could barely contain his excitement.

Rani glanced at her brother uncertainly but said nothing. Rani was always trying to be brave, probably because one day she would rule the Tree of Life. Janna contemplated, for young cubs were still unaccustomed to the actual horrors of the world, and this world had seen plenty of horrors. There were many tales to be told, but one came to mind, a story that had been passed down for generations.

"All right little ones, listen well," Janna urged her grandchildren closer, "This is a story that happened long before my grandmother's grandmother was a cub."

Rani and Baliyo brimmed with excitement. Older stories were always the best.

"Long ago, the world was peaceful. Every creature had their place within the circle of life," Janna began her tale, "The circle remained undisturbed for many years, until 'he' came."

"He?" Baliyo repeated.

"A demon," Janna clarified with the utmost dread in her voice, "He fell from the heavens, but he did not bring light, but a great darkness, and his name was Piccolo."

Rani immediately burst out into laughter, "Piccolo? That's a funny name, Grandmother!"

Baliyo soon joined his sister in laughter, but the pair stopped as they noticed their grandmother's face remained firm.

"I assure you, his name may have been humorous, but he was not," Janna's words were deadly serious as she maintained a firm glare, "Piccolo spawned an army of demons who caused destruction wherever they went. Any creature caught within their path was killed, but that wasn't the worst of it."

Rani and Baliyo huddled close, for they knew the worst was indeed coming.

"Those slain by the demons could not complete their journey through the Circle of Life, instead remaining within a deathless limbo for eternity."

The two cubs were practically hugging one another at this point, for the story seemed to grow darker by the minute.

"None could oppose Piccolo and his hoard until one lone human came forward."

"A human, what's that grandmother?" Baliyo asked.

Janna considered the best way to describe humanity, "Humans are….complicated….for they can do great harm, but also great good," Happy with her explanation, she continued, "This human was good, and he could no longer stand the carnage the demons had wrought. He slew them one by one until only Piccolo remained."

"And the human beat him, right?" Rani curiously asked.

Janna's expression fell, "No. Although the human fought well, in the end, he was no match for the demon king."

Any joy that the cubs had built up fell as they continued to listen.

"Arrogant in his victory, Piccolo spared the human, and the human left in disgrace," Janna's gaze grew distant, "The death and destruction continued, and there was little hope to stop the monster, until the human returned," The distant gaze suddenly shined, "Despite his loss, the human had persevered, honing his skills for one last battle."

Upon hearing this, the two cubs inched away from each other, their hope rising as they knew the story was reaching its climax.

"The human had mastered a new technique one capable of felling the demon," Janna paused for a brief moment, but finally spoke, "He confronted the demon who arrogantly laughed in his face, but then, he unleashed his new power."

Rani and Baliyo were practically glued to one another as they stared at their grandmother, eagerly awaiting the climax of her story.

"He released a massive wave of power, it sucked the demon within and flew into a prison of human making, and sealed it up so Piccolo could not escape."

Rani and Baliyo released tiny gasps as their grandmother continued.

"However, using this power cost him his life, so he instructed one of his students to throw the prison into the deepest depths of the ocean, and that is where the demon has remained to this day."

The two cubs knew the story was over, but they looked at one another and then back to their grandmother, "Is he really still down there Grandmother?" Rani asked.

Janna nodded.

"And he really can't get out?" Baliyo asked.

"Only by those full enough to release him anyway," Janna stated darkly, but then her expression smiled, "But worry not little ones, even if evil is released, good will always rise to defeat it."

Hearing that brought hopeful smiles to Rani and Baliyo's faces. Their grandmother was the wisest lion around, so there was truth to her words. But little did they know their grandmother was wrong on one count. The Great Demon King Piccolo had indeed been released, many years ago by a full of delusions of grandeur. But as Janna had said, a hero had risen to defeat him. A powerful but pure-hearted young boy with a tail.

A/N This is actually the second Lion King/Dragonball crossover I've written. I know we have to kind of stretch things to have these two franchises in the same world, but basically this is set in a universe where Africa is simply a region of the Dragonball Earth. Ideally, I imagine the events of the first Lion King happened between the 7 year time gap between the Cell Games and the Buu Arc, then the Lion Guard is set sometime after the Buu Arc, but before Beerus arrives on Earth.