Parasect (Paras)
Vermiems herbaestas pyrite
Overview
Parasect is one of the best known examples of a parasitic pokémon. This is twofold: the tochukaso mushroom takes complete control over the organism by the time of evolution, and parasect survive by sucking out the xylem of trees until they die. Then they move on to another tree.
In Asia parasect are best known as a source of herbal medicine. In the mountainous areas where parasect can naturally be found there have been wars fought over their collection rights. Tochukaso can sell for over $1,400 a kilogram. Killing and harvesting a single parasect can be worth well over three month's wages in the poorer regions of Tibet and Nepal. The dual threats of poaching and climate change have led to a precipitous decline in the Himalayan population.
Alola's parasect are far less useful for medicinal purposes. The population on the islands are mostly remnants from abandoned attempts to farm them. Early Japanese colonists believed that the damp climate could facilitate mushroom growth. In reality the species struggles to grow properly in warm climates. Altering their spores to be toxic to morelull has further reduced their medicinal potency.
For all of the above reasons, the Alolan or tropical parasect is known in Asia as the pyrite parasect, visibly similar to gold but much less valuable. Local apothecaries will still use tropical parasect spores due to the difficulty of importing body parts of a critically endangered organism.
Trainers may find value in parasect as a relatively low-difficulty alternative to shiinotic. A clever trainer can even find a role for them to play in battle up to the fourth island. Some eclectic individuals also swear they make good pets. Trainers may ascertain the truth of these statements for themselves.
Physiology
Paras and parasect are classified as dual grass- and bug-types. There is some dispute over this typing as very young paras may not qualify for a secondary grass-typing. Fungi are also not a perfect fit for the grass-typing and may even warrant a typing of their own in the future. Consult the Shiinotic entry for more details.
Paras are yellow, red, or orange six-legged insects. The front legs are larger than the back ones and have pincers at the end. Their eyes appear to be complex with irises and retinas, but this is not the case. The outside of the 'eye' is simply a white marking. The interior is a complex eye. The eyespots are designed to make the pokémon appear larger at a glance.
Two tochukaso mushrooms grow from the back of a mature paras. Three to six smaller fruiting bodies appear above the eyes and mandibles. These mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of two separate fungal networks that heavily influence the nervous system of younger paras and outright control the actions of older specimens. While the fungi generally cooperate with each other, sometimes they will reach differing conclusions and cause the organism to freeze up.
Tochukaso mushrooms cannot photosynthesize or generate nutrients for themselves. They must rely on the host paras to obtain food for them. Paras are geared towards a nutrient poor diet of tree xylem. This is a very passive and uncontested food source, allowing for the fungus to take almost all the nutrients and leave the paras with just enough food to defend them in an emergency.
The pincers are a last line of defense in case anything gets too close. Spores are their main deterrent. Tochukaso manufacture a variety of spores for combat purposes, from paralytic neurotoxins to depressants that rapidly induce exhaustion. Even if the depressant does not instantly put the target to sleep it can interfere with complex thought and reduce the target's drive to the point of sitting still while being harmed. Their most (in)famous but least frequently deployed is a neurotoxin that triggers intense, full-body pain for a few minutes. These spores are heavy and can only be deployed at short ranges. The pain inducing spores are most useful for medicinal purposes and can make a potent painkiller when processed correctly. The depressant and paralytic have their own applications. Eastern Medicine believes that an exact blend of boiled paralytic and depressant spores, as well as the treated flesh of the mushroom, can extend a person's lifespan. When untreated the flesh of the tochukaso is highly poisonous due to its arsenic concentrations.
Parasect are much larger than paras. The fungus has taken complete control over the nervous system. The organism cannot survive without the fungus after evolution. Only one mushroom survives evolution. It grows ever larger until the parasect can barely move it. Some less useful parts of the insect are chemically mummified to reduce the nutrients needed to keep the organism alive. Parasect generally appear to be withered as few nutrients are ever sent to the insect portion of the body. The mushroom houses far more spores than paras's mushrooms. A single parasect can coat the ground up to six feet away in a quarter inch layer of spores. Their pincers are also much larger and better for defensive and offensive actions until the spores can take effect.
Parasect can grow to be three feet tall, including the mushroom. They typically weigh thirty to forty pounds.
Behavior
Hatchling paras are the only life stage where the insect has full control of the nervous system. They still behave almost identically to older paras and parasect.
In old growth rainforests, paras dig into trees and drink up their xylem from the inside. Whole collectives of paras and even parasect can live in particularly large trees. These serve as protection and food sources alike. When the tree eventually dies the whole collective will leave and move on to find a new one. This is the most commonly observed feeding strategy in most of Akala and Ula'Ula.
In areas with only smaller trees, particularly mangroves, paras and parasect can take a different strategy. Paras's pincers are used to either dig a burrow of their own or force another pokémon out and steal theirs. Parasect prefer to live in nearby caves, using their hooked legs and exceptional climbing abilities to rest on the ceiling, beyond the reach of most predators.
During the day, both stages emerge and find exposed mangrove roots to bite into. After draining the xylem for the day they will retreat to more protected areas to avoid wandering shiinotic at night.
As Alola's parasect capture rules became better established the paras have become better at hiding during the day. They now prefer to dig their burrows near mangrove roots, giving them a faster retreat option at the expense of sometimes losing their burrow due to flooding. Parasect have begun to climb higher up larger mangrove trees and use their pincers to claw open the bark and drink directly from the trunk.
Parasect are not hierarchical. They also do not appear to be social, despite living in large collectives. Individuals will rarely acknowledge each other even when literally touching in a crowded tree cavity. Captive specimens do not seem to interact with each other more than absolutely necessary, although they will tolerate conspecifics.
Husbandry
Paras and parasect are generally much easier to care for than shiinotic. Unlike shiinotic, parasect do not discharge spores every night. Even in battle they usually release as few as they think they can get away with. A parasect trainer could theoretically go without owning a respirator, much less using it every night. Parasect also do not drink blood in the wild and almost never attack their trainer.
The line are usually reclusive, preferring to hide in dark areas and drink artificial xylem though a membrane. Descriptions for a feeding box can be found in the shiinotic entry. Unlike shiinotic, parasect can drink normally. They just prefer having to pierce a membrane or gnaw away wood to get to their food.
Parasect are not social with each other. Most are reclusive and prefer to stay in a cool, damp place whenever possible. Others can be curious and even affectionate towards other species, socializing with teammates and seeking out their trainer. They should still be given dark, damp places whenever possible, but will leave them willingly. These paras are also usually the most eager to battle. Particularly curious parasect will require occasional exposure to new environments or objects to keep them satisfied.
Parasect and shiinotic cannot be teammates. Parasect also tend to dislike other fungi and will try to gnaw on grass-types when hungry. Otherwise they tolerate most other species. There is no risk of parasect infecting insects other than their usual host.
Illness
Parasect are in a state of continual death and decay. The body no longer receives enough nutrients from the fungus and begins to slowly mummify outside of the most important muscles, organs, and exoskeleton components. They do not rot, however. Any rot is a sign of immediate concern. Substantial damage to a parasect's mushroom that does not heal is also concerning. Paras can safely lose a mushroom without consequence.
Even if a problem is diagnosed it is very difficult to treat parasect. Both fungicides and insecticides are off the table. More esoteric methods of healing such as blissey eggs, potions, and heal pulse can upset the delicate balance between insect and fungus. They are usually fine to use on paras, riskier for parasect. Thankfully parasect are quite good at healing damage to the fungus. Serious injuries to the insect body can be slow to repair, if they are repaired at all. It is best to keep parasect out of situations where serious injury is probable. If spores will not work, consider not using the parasect at all.
Evolution
Paras have two fungi competing for control of the organism. Eventually one will predominate and eat most of the other's roots within the insect. The mushroom will eventually fall off. If only one mushroom is still intact when the pokémon approaches evolution the other will not regrow and the remaining fungus will almost always win control. Evolution begins once the insect has reached a certain size and one fungus has destroyed the other.
Upon reaching the evolution threshold the pokémon begins eating more and more to facilitate rapid growth of the insect body. The mushroom begins growing shortly thereafter. Once both have reached their maximum size the insect body will begin to mummify, a process that will slowly continue until the organism's death.
Battle
Parasect are far too frail to be of use in competitive battling. Breloom are almost always a better choice due to their much greater speed, power, and healing rate.
On the island challenge paras and parasect make for decent disruptors. They can learn to copy powder techniques from other grass-types to supplement their own natural spores. Just the ability to daze totems or put them to sleep makes them invaluable during trials. In the rare doubles match parasect can also learn rage powder to further disrupt opponent's strategies, although they may not actually be able to take the hits coming their way.
Parasect's problems are numerous. They are slow, frail, and only have average power. Their typing is also one of the worst possible, leaving them extremely vulnerable to fire and wind attacks. Any poison effective against either fungi or insects can be devastating to them. They also have little tolerance for extreme cold. Their offensive coverage options are also limited. It is almost always best to incapacitate a single opponent and immediately withdraw parasect. That is the most useful they will be, anyway.
Parasect's best counters are inorganic pokémon immune to spore attacks. Flying types that can manipulate the wind to push spores away and damage the parasect are also very useful. So long as the spores can somehow be played around almost any fully evolved pokémon can win a damage race against parasect. Just take care not to get close.
Acquisition
In 1970 the Alolan commonwealth instituted a bounty system for the removal of paras and parasect. An increasing number were turned in, but the wild population never declined. This was because a number of enterprising breeders had taken to breeding the parasect, releasing the paras, and then recapturing them for a profit. Bounties were discontinued but there are no capture limits on the line.
Parasect can be found in the dense, moist rainforests in northeastern Akala and northern Ula'Ula. They are far easier to find in the mangrove forests of Brooklet Hill. During the day paras can be spotted hanging around roots and parasect can be seen high up in trees. Their skittishness makes a scent tracker or bird with keen vision useful for spotting them. Once captured they can usually be won over with regular feedings and a safe dark place to retreat to. Training them can take time and patience, except for the rare specimens that are naturally curious and aggressive.
Adoption has been controversial. As a devastating invasive species it was initially the policy of the government and nonprofits to cull any parasect surrendered to their care. This led to trainers releasing their pets instead of putting them up for adoption, compounding the problem. At present the government ships unwanted parasect to Asia. They are not useful enough to be culled for spores in China and Japan, and their small size makes them comparatively good pets. Pyrite parasect have thankfully become trendy pets in Macau and Hong Kong, allowing for shelters to reliably find homes for exported specimens. There is some concern that this may once more encourage captive breeding of the species.
Paras and parasect can be captured or purchased with a Class II license.
Breeding
Parasect consist of both male and female insect bodies and a hermaphrodite fungus. Mating involves both. First the insect bodies of two parasect will mate, usually in the spring. The female parasect will lay a clutch of three to five hundred eggs into a shallow hole in the ground. The eggs will hatch three weeks later. Both parents will watch over the eggs and young offspring until they are one month old. Both parents will then carve an incision into their surviving offspring's back and place a spore inside. These spores will eventually expand to hijack the paras's nervous system and form two mushrooms on their back. After this point the parents will ignore their offspring as much as possible, even when they are touching in a crowded tree hollow.
Captive breeding of parasect is relatively easy for a single pair and very difficult at scale. Parasect are difficult to sex as their organs are impossible to reach without risking harm to the insect or fungus. Genetic testing or telepathy are the only reliable ways of determining a specimen's sex. Once a male and female are placed together with adequate food they will eventually mate, raise their offspring, and implant spores in their back. A large number of paras can theoretically be bred if the eggs are zealously protected in a controlled environment.
The real problem is feeding a large enough number of paras and parasect to make the operation financially viable. Before the modern era this was only possible by raising a collective in an old growth forest. Because parasect kill trees relatively quickly the practice is a blight on the ecosystem and not sustainable without very large plots of land. Eventually parasect collectives had depleted so much of the highland forests of Honshu that the Japanese government was having trouble with the displaced forest pokémon wreaking havoc in the cities. There simply are not enough suitable forests in Japan suitable for parasect to meet the country's demand for spores and mushrooms.
It was thought that the parasect might breed naturally in Alola with its massive old growth rainforests. These forests are damp and the forest floor can often be quite dark from light being blocked by the canopy. Unfortunately, parasect grow the most useful spores only in cooler environments. Alola's tropical weather made the spores near worthless and the remaining specimens were all released to the wild when the farms went bankrupt.
Modern techniques can be used to feed parasect artificial xylem, but this appears to decrease their eagerness to reproduce. In some cases it has resulted in them killing offspring outright rather than planting spores in them. Again, better results are seen with a single pair than with a full collective.
Relatives
There are three living subspecies of parasect. V. h. shānbǎo, the true parasect, are native to the Tibetan plateau and portions of Nepal and Bhutan. They can only survive in cold temperatures and thin air. True parasect are slightly larger than pyrite parasect, reaching up to four feet in height. They are mostly solitary and spread out over wide ranges, using spores sent into strong winds to communicate when it is time to mate. They are territorial and will kill other conspecifics that get too close to their current home. This prevents them from destroying every tree in the highlands.
V. h. polo are known as the domesticated, lowland, or silver parasect. They are larger than the other subspecies and regularly grow to be five feet tall. The largest specimen recorded was over six feet tall. These were carefully bred over the course of centuries to live in lowland forests of China. While they produce far more spores and larger mushrooms than highland parasect, they are of a lesser quality. Over the centuries some were eventually smuggled into Russia, Japan, Korea, and India and captive and feral populations were established. Feral populations prefer to live in large caves systems and mountainous regions. These are the direct ancestors of pyrite parasect.
The extinct Hisuian parasect, V. h. laventon, was never raised in captivity aside from a few specimens in the late 19th Century. They were descended from an ill-fated trading mission to Hisui in the 1300s. Over time these parasect became unusually aggressive towards humans and lashed out on sight. They would even attack humans guarded by fire-types and would never stop until they died. The reason for their aggression is unknown. The native peoples of Hisui preferred to leave them be in much of their range, only entering when we'll protected. Any that got too close to settlements were culled. This allowed for their mushrooms to be harvested as needed and kept people safe.
Colonists in the 19th Century were not fond of the hyper aggressive parasect and ultimately drove them to extinction for the sake of wealth and expansion. The Hisuian parasect's spores and mushroom could be sold at an even higher price than those of highland parasect. By 1960 only five captive specimens remained, all housed on the campus of the Kotobuki Natural History Museum. Despite some initial captive breeding success, the species was wiped out in 1965 after a gang stole and killed the parasect for their mushrooms.
Parasect's closest insect relative are nincada. It is theorized that further research into parasect's mummified bodies may unravel some of shedinja's many secrets.
The closest living relative of the tochukaso parasect is shiinotic, another fungus known for feeding on blood. The two species harbor a deep, instinctual resentment for each other.