Volcarona (Larvesta)
Rextinea prometheum
Overview
There are pokémon so powerful that they are commonly considered to be gods. Most of these are unique, or at least highly rare. Then there are entire species whose strongest members can go toe to toe with so-called gods and emerge victorious. These species are commonly large dragons, or at least pseudo dragons like milotic and gyarados. Volcarona is an insect distantly related to butterfree and wurmple. They are among the strongest pokémon on the planet.
Cultures across the world regarded volcarona as servants of the gods, or even their nemeses. Other societies worshipped the volcarona outright. There are no tales of brave heroes or pokémon going to fight one: fighting a hydreigon is one thing, but no one dared to offend a creature that could kill everyone in a city in a matter of seconds.
Volcarona are mostly content to stay out of humanity's way. They eat plants and minerals and have no reason to actively hunt. Sometimes they incidentally help humanity by warming the winter air to help their own offspring or providing light in volcanic winters to protect their food supply. Childless volcarona will happily accept offerings and bribes as well. Volcarona with children should be given an enormously wide berth. A mother worried for her child can burn forests and towns to cinders.
There are inevitably trainers who wish to harness this power. Actually finding a volcarona to train is the hardest part, as mothers react extremely poorly to their larvesta being taken and adults are usually too proud to submit to a human.
Once in captivity volcarona are surprisingly easy to care for compared to creatures of similar power. Their diet is much simpler than that of dragons and they can cool their body enough that it is safe to touch. Volcarona also rarely lose control of their powers — they are herbivores that would lose out on food if they constantly killed the plants around them.
The few trainers that have found a way to tame a volcarona have become some of the strongest battlers in the world. There are always those who believe themselves capable of being the next volcarona trainer. Most die trying.
Physiology
Both stages are classified as dual bug- and fire-types. The ruling is not disputed.
Larvesta are large caterpillars. They have a brown segmented abdomen. Their thorax and part of the head are hidden beneath a thick layer of white fur. Five red antennae extend from the thorax at equidistant intervals. Larvesta have a patch of black scales around their eyes that make them appear to be a single large eye. Their actual eyes are blue. Larvesta's legs are short and coated in velcro-like hairs that allow them to stick to almost any surface. Larvesta possess a set of flame sacs filled with chemical reagents that can rapidly increase the surface temperature of the larvesta's body or be used to spit out a line of fire with temperatures over 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
Volcarona are large moths with six red wings and an unusually large body for a flying insect. They retain two antennae, one on either side of the head. These are used to sense air currents and help the pokémon direct the movement of heat and scales. Most of the body is coated in white hair. Volcarona have four small legs. They are not very mobile on land. Even their wings could not ordinarily support their weight for long periods of time. Volcarona fly by manipulating the air temperatures around them so that they are always held aloft by thermals.
Volcarona are notable for being one of the only organic pokémon with a fission reactor organ in their body. This allows them to produce extraordinary amounts of fire energy, survive for long periods without food, and bathe an area in deadly radiation. They are still perfectly safe to handle and train. Their fur and scales are extremely good at keeping deadly radiation from getting out: it would not do for the plants around their lair to constantly die of radiation poisoning. It is impossible to get a meaningful sample size, but volcarona trainers have not historically died at young ages from cancer. However, the kind of trainer who seeks to train a volcarona is likely to take other risks. Relatively few live long enough for gradual radiation poisoning to be a problem. Portable Geiger counters are still recommended for any volcarona trainers.
The red scales on volcarona's wings are gradually imbued by the reactor with an enormous amount of fire elemental energy. They are harmless while attached to the volcarona's wings. When scattered they create a burst of intense heat, flame, light, and radiation called a flare. Volcarona can regrow scales in a matter of minutes.
Volcarona's final adaptation of note is their ability to survive for prolonged periods without oxygen. When a volcarona is flaring they will quickly burn through all the oxygen around them. This can be more dangerous than the heat of their flames. Volcarona's cells can respirate using sulfur as a base instead of oxygen. This is not as efficient and is only used when flaring.
Volcarona can grow to lengths of eight feet and weights of three hundred pounds. Their captive lifespan is poorly documented. Wild individuals are estimated to have a maximum lifespan around two hundred years.
Behavior
Volcarona are primarily solitary creatures. They hold vast ranges and will engage in threat displays towards intruders. These displays often involve minor flaring in an attempt to intimidate their rival. The intruder will usually leave without incident. Volcarona are found throughout the tropical regions of the world, as well as a few temperate ones. They can always find a territory of their own somewhere else.
All of Alola is part of a single volcarona's territory. She tolerated a mate's intrusion in 2017 but drove him away a few months later. He briefly established his own territory on Ula'Ula before departing for the Marshall Islands.
Volcarona are primarily herbivorous. They feed on the leaves and fruit of cinnamon, tree of life, evergreen, and citrus trees. Volcarona can spend up to nine hours a day foraging for leaves. A mother with children will either bring her larvesta with her or never stray far from her nest.
Most of volcarona's preferred diet is only available in tropical regions. In temperate areas they can flare on the coldest days of the winter to ensure their food supply does not die off. They will also flare when any larvesta living with them become too cold. This is actually more common in subtropical areas than temperate ones as temperate volcarona tend to find better insulated burrows. Volcarona's flaring makes them a keystone species in their habitats. It also helped humans avoid crop failure in the aftermath of Krakatoa's eruption.
In order to power their reactor and anaerobic respiration, volcarona need to eat minerals with high sulfur and fire energy content. Radioactive materials are highly valued, but a volcarona can theoretically go years between large radioactive meals if needed. Frequent or intense flaring greatly shortens this interval. Most volcarona live around volcanoes where sulfurous compounds and volcanic ash are readily available. The former help them breathe without oxygen. The latter are good stores of fire energy that can be used to hold power when the reactor is dormant. Reactors usually only turn on during prolonged flaring. They otherwise store their power in scales and a sooty particulate held in a flame sac organ.
Volcarona have accepted offerings of waste from nuclear power plants. A few live in close proximity in the Chernobyl exclusion zone and the area around the Bikini Atoll. It is common for volcarona to occasionally migrate there for a summer to feed. These sites appear to be communal territory and neutral ground. The oral tradition of Unova holds that volcarona held similar migrations to the Unovan desert after The War of Kings, although these migrations have slowed considerably as the ambient radiation levels have declined. At least one volcarona still lives in the desert. Some of the strongest known specimens came from the area.
Volcarona spend their nights in their den. In tropical areas these can be any shelter that offers some protection from wind and rain. Abandoned homes and cave entrances are the most common dens. Males in subtropical and temperate regions will live in the same kinds of dens as they do not have to worry about hypothermia. Females will need to find a sufficiently warm den, such as an abandoned annex of a building or a bibarel lodge. Gravid volcarona have been known to evaporate a pond and fly into a lodge and claim it as their own. Many bibarel will start building a second, terrestrial lodge when they see a volcarona. Some cultures have offered the bibarel resources to construct the dam with or even built a home for the volcarona themselves. Many sun temples around the world began as volcarona dens that were later expanded upon for human use when the volcarona died or migrated elsewhere.
When volcarona are not eating during the day they will typically patrol their territory or bask in sunlight. Do not approach the volcarona. If she approaches, stay calm and make no sudden movements. Give her whatever she wants. Feeding wildlife is generally frowned upon, but an exception can be made in this case.
Husbandry
In most parts of the world, it is difficult to care for larvesta and volcarona on the trail. Alola has enough of their favored foods that they can simply graze for themselves in most of the region. In the particularly cold and arid areas a supply of leaves will need to be brought along. They will almost exclusively eat the species listed above, although some volcarona will tolerate or even crave leaves from other species. Some larvesta will enjoy herbs as much as leaves and will retain this love after they evolve. Volcarona can eat up to thirty pounds of leaves a day. They get most of their water from their diet. Water bowls should be provided once or twice a day but the pokémon will rarely drink.
Sulfur supplements should be made available at least once a week. Volcarona can usually be trusted to pour an opened container onto their food and get as much as they feel they need. Radioactive material is more difficult to obtain. Tritium water can replace standard water bowls once or twice a month. Acting champions have sometimes made arrangements with power plants or industrial facilities in their regions. Other trainers simply take annual vacation to Ukraine or the Marshall Islands to let their pokémon feed.
Volcarona are smart enough to be housebroken within a few days. Larvesta may need a few weeks if they do not have a volcarona's help. Even if they know what to do they may not be mobile enough to get to a litter mat in the time between knowing they have to defecate and being unable to hold it off any longer. A den with larvesta in it should ideally have a soil that can absorb the waste.
Volcarona, and particularly female volcarona with larvesta, need dens. On the trail they can go without a permanent one so long as an enclosed area such as a tent, closet, or large box is provided at night. Some volcarona will even agree to sleep in a ball. Most will not enter a ball for longer than an hour barring extraordinary circumstances. Doing so without their consent outside of a clear emergency will almost certainly provoke a flaring when they are finally released.
Volcarona prefer warm, dry environments. They can tolerate ambient moisture so long as they are not physically wet. This makes flying difficult and can lead them to flare. If the volcarona's surroundings drop below fifty degrees Fahrenheit for a prolonged period they may feel the need to start venting energy, which can result in harmful radiation levels in the surrounding area.
Larvesta have stricter environmental requirements. Any exposure to temperatures beneath fifty degrees can cause stunted growth or illness. They grow extremely uncomfortable if they are not either being protected by their mother or in an enclosed space with no apparent threats.
There are two schools of thought on raising a larvesta. The first, and most common approach, is to let their mother handle almost everything. Volcarona are capable of raising their own children if provided sufficient resources. This keeps mother and child happy and healthy with minimal human intervention. The drawbacks are that the mother will be extremely cagey during this time and can lash out with minimal provocation. She will need a very large fenced off radius around her den to prevent incidents. Sufficiently large islands are the best childrearing spaces as it is highly unlikely anyone approaches and gets themselves killed. Unfortunately, the larvesta will grow up relatively unaccustomed to humans and may not agree to stay as a trained pokémon upon evolution.
The second approach is to try and be an active parent, or even a sole parent, to the larvesta. This requires a great deal of respect from the volcarona and frequent insertion into the process early on, calling potential bluffs and showing that the trainer can be trusted with the larvesta. Personally delivering food to the den entrance is a good way to start the process. Over time the volcarona will become more relaxed and even allow their trainer unsupervised time with the larvesta. The primary drawback of this approach is that sometimes the trainer misjudges the situation and dies of immolation or radiation poisoning. But, if everything goes well, the larvesta will probably agree to be transferred to another trainer upon evolution.
Larvesta have been successfully hand-raised without a volcarona. This is usually done in cases involving abandoned or orphaned specimens. Volcarona will also occasionally allow an older larvesta to be caught. This stage is relatively reclusive and prefer to spend all of their time in a den in captivity. The space should be climate controlled and food and water always made available. Non-flammable bedding at least eighteen inches deep should line the bottom of the enclosure. Larvesta are prone to burrowing in soft soils. Hiding toys in the substrate can make for good enrichment. There should also be a small climbing structure capable of supporting the pokémon's weight.
Male and childless female volcarona are relatively docile pokémon that get along well with most teammates. No predator will make serious attempts to challenge them and the volcarona, in turn, is unlikely to lash out without extreme provocation. They are unlikely to be particularly social and will often stick to themselves. Bug and fire specialists usually have the behavioral and husbandry knowledge, respectively, to help them best care for the pokémon. Volcarona have much the same body language as other moths and butterflies. The need to have heat shielding equipment is similar to many other fire-types.
Larvesta are timid pokémon. They pair best with small bug-types that they will not see as a threat. Sometimes they will even socialize with caterpie, scatterbug, or venonat.
Illness
Volcarona are hardy creatures. Despite the intense radiation in their bodies there is no record of one ever developing cancer. This has made them of great interest to researchers, although actually observing a live specimen can be difficult. They are proud pokémon unlikely to comply with laboratory tests. Even standard medical examination training can be difficult. Intrusive procedures will require psychic sedation. This may still cause the pokémon to become upset when they wake up. Volcarona are relatively reasonable pokémon aware of how fragile humans and their teammates are. They will not flare at any provocation, but the possibility makes it too dangerous to antagonize them without a very good reason.
Trainers should keep a portable Geiger counter on hand to make sure that the volcarona is keeping their radiation within safe levels. Spending an hour around a calm volcarona results in no more radiation exposure than ingesting a banana. Being around a mildly distressed volcarona is equivalent to flying on an airplane. Blissey eggs have shown some ability to reduce or reverse the damage of chronic radiation poisoning. Any trainer battling with a volcarona should take all necessary precautions to ensure that the stadium is properly shielded from radiation. This often involves paying for specialized barrier pokémon at personal expense.
In the event that a trainer is inadequately protected from a volcarona flare they should immediately withdraw the volcarona, ingest potassium iodide, and seek specialized medical care. Some pokémon can reverse the effects of recent acute radiation poisoning. Without proper care organ failure or death can occur in a matter of hours.
Larvesta are frailer than volcarona. They are prone to suffering from a number of illnesses, most notably hypothermia. Larvesta can become entirely inactive when their body temperature dips too low. They may refuse to eat or start lighting everything they can on fire. Both should be treated as cause for concern and the pokémon should be taken to a qualified veterinarian as soon as possible.
Evolution
Larvesta spin a cocoon when they are almost six years old. This is the only time in their life that larvesta are likely to to produce silk. Their silk is not flammable but the oils secreted onto it are capable of burning for some time. As soon as the cocoon is formed around the larvesta, the oils are set on fire. The larvesta may stay in the cocoon for up to three months before emerging as a small volcarona. The moth will put on weight over the next decade until it grows to full size. Researchers are still unsure exactly what occurs inside of the cocoon as most cameras are rendered useless by the silk, fire, or shifting elemental energies inside the cocoon. For the first ten weeks the cocoon will not need to be shielded. Lead shields should be set up around it after this point. A sensor should be installed within the shielding to detect the volcarona's emergence. Even without shielding the radiation is still not powerful enough to cause acute poisoning, although prolonged exposure could result in problems over the long term.
Battle
There is a reason trainers go through all of the risks involved in keeping a volcarona. They are indisputably one of the ten strongest species that are not unique. Over a fifth of professional trainers ranked them as the strongest non-unique species currently in use in the most recent Battler survey. Volcarona can instantly flood an arena in light, fire, and radiation. Every cubic foot of a standard size battleground will be at least 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit within thirty seconds of the flare beginning. All oxygen will be burned up within two minutes, at which point the flames will extinguish. The heat will remain. Around volcarona temperatures can rise to 5,500 degrees Fahrenheit. Even dragons struggle to survive these conditions for long. Volcarona are also surprisingly fast and can avoid telegraphed attacks. Anything that survives the flare can be brought down by bug, psychic, or grass coverage attacks.
Most trainers agree that volcarona are not the strongest pokémon available. This is because, flaring aside, they would only be as strong as a mid-tier dragon. Their max speed is only around forty miles per hour and most of their non-flare attacks are of middling power by the standards of the highest professional leagues. Volcarona are fairly durable and can patch any injuries up with roost, but they lack proper armor. Anything that can survive the flare has a decent chance of taking a volcarona down.
What, then, can survive the flare? The answer is powerful inorganic pokémon. Many top-tier mineral pokémon such as rhyperior, tyranitar, and steelix can survive the flare and retaliate with strong rock-type attacks. Phantom pokémon often do not care about the heat or radiation, although the light can present a problem. Chandelure in particular can take everything volcarona can dish out and become stronger for it. Dragapult are not particularly averse to light and can outpace and finish off a volcarona quite easily. Other ghosts can at least use tricks like disable, perish song, and destiny bond to stop the flare or take the volcarona out with them, respectively. In terms of organic pokémon, Asian ninetales can tolerate the flames and radiation and use their vast arsenal of tricks to try and shut down their opponent. They simply must do so before the oxygen runs out. Other strong fire-types such as arcanine and charizard can hope to blitz the volcarona. Extremely powerful dragons can keep their distance from their opponent and rain down draco meteors or other ranged attacks. A handful of pokémon such as castform and altaria can cancel out the flaring entirely by negating the elemental energy on the field. The former are not competitively viable, but a handful of dragon trainers keep an altaria on standby for when they must fight a volcarona trainer. Abnormally powerful true psychics can also withstand the flare long enough to strike the volcarona with a powerful mental attack. They will, in turn, probably be taken out by bug buzz or the flare.
The problem with all of these strategies is that they require keeping the counter out of the fight until the volcarona is sent out. Unless the volcarona is sent out against them they will probably only be able to revenge kill it, meaning that they will still lose a pokémon of the volcarona trainer's choice. Volcarona also entirely negate the vast majority of pokémon. Other top threats such as metagross, tyranitar, and hydreigon can at least be fought by most pokémon and gradually worn down.
Any trainer using a volcarona on the island challenge does not need this guidebook's advice. Most opponents will simply surrender before the flaring even begins, or even before the battle occurs at all.
Larvesta are far more competent than the average larva stage insect pokémon. They are larger than fully evolved bug-types like vikavolt and ledian. Larvesta, while not as physically powerful as pokémon like armaldo, heracross, and scyther, can still hold their own against most young pokémon or weaker fully evolved pokémon. They fight through a combination of full body tackles, blasts of fire from the horns, and utility moves such as will-o-wisp and roost. This can carry them through the second or even the third island, but their strength will plateau unless they can evolve. The other problem with larvesta is that they are extremely reluctant battlers. Most specimens will become resentful if forced to fight on a regular basis, regardless of if they are good at it. Their mother, if present, may intervene to prevent her child from having to battle. Of course, any trainer with a volcarona will hardly need to use the larvesta in battle. The difference in fighting styles between larvesta and volcarona also means there is relatively little reason to frequently use a larvesta in battle.
Acquisition
Alola's sole volcarona lives in the old lava tunnels of Mauna Wela located beneath Alolan Rainforests National Preserve. There are entrances to the tunnels at several points in the preserve. Do not enter the tunnels. None of the other pokémon living there are only found in them. In addition to being dark, rugged, and largely unmarked, the tunnels also house a mother who is extremely protective of her child. If you must go out of your way to view the volcarona, it is best to do so through binoculars while she feeds during the day. Stay at least 1000 feet away from the moth at all times. She is no less dangerous than a salamence or garchomp and easier to provoke if her child is with her. If, for whatever reason, the larvesta is not present it may be safe to approach. Immediately retreat if any aggression is shown, no matter how much distance is already between you.
At least two trainers have attempted to coax the volcarona onto their team. One survived. She was respectful the entire time, had a psychic-type to translate, and offered a pile of cinnamon tree leaves. She made her pitch while the volcarona ate the leaves and retreated once the moth rejected her offer. The known casualty attempted an ambush with a master ball. He successfully captured her, only to be killed the moment she was released. The ball was later recovered. It is currently in the possession of the Alolan Pokémon League. As such capture is impossible without the express permission of both the volcarona and the League. Owning her would require a Class V license and a hefty insurance policy.
Sometimes volcarona are willing to part with an older larvesta if an experienced, gentle, and competent trainer comes around. Her current larvesta is three years old as of 2018, which makes it possible she would want to part with them. The larvesta's sex is unknown. Capture is permitted with a Class V license. It is highly discouraged. If it must be attempted, show respect at all times and keep an abra on hand.
Breeding
Volcarona are solitary pokémon. Females will usually wait a few years after their last larvesta evolved to seek out a mate. In practice mating usually occurs at the end of a stay in Chernobyl or the Bikini Atoll, the species' neutral ground. The female will fly home, chase out any intruders that have moved in during that time, and lay a single egg in her den. She will not leave the den for any reason over the next forty days. The larvesta weighs less than one pound when it hatches. They will live inside of their mother's fur for the next three months, at which point they will become too big. The larvesta will still almost always be on their mother's back when outside the den.
After three years the mother will gradually give the larvesta more independence. They will forage for themselves while their mother watches from nearby. Some larvesta will pick fights with weak pokémon that live nearby. Their mother will usually not intervene unless they fear their child could be killed. Most opponents have the grace to take a few blows and retreat without fighting back. Seriously injuring the larvesta would spell their own doom.
Captive breeding is difficult to impossible to force. Volcarona that meet each other at a communal site or after a battle may mate. They probably will not. There is no real way to predict the outcome of the encounter. Repeatedly exposing a female to many males may lead her to believe her territory is disputed and discourage her from mating until she feels more secure. Volcarona have been crossbred once with aurumoth, their closest living relative. Wild specimens have not been known to crossbreed with any other species.
The basics of larvesta husbandry were discussed in a previous section.
Relatives
Volcarona are capable of migrating over three thousand miles at a time. This gives them a global range with a sparse distribution. They interbreed freely across vast geographical distances and subspeciation is not necessary.
Volcarona's last common ancestor with ordinary moths went extinct over forty million years ago. They share a family, Claratinea, with the endangered aurumoth. Volcarona are the only living members of the genus Rextinea. Another species, R. labebantur, is known only from a single mummified specimen. R. labebantur were far larger than modern volcarona and had smaller wings. They may have been entirely incapable of flight. The mummified specimen lacked a reactor organ. Insects are not often well preserved in the fossil record due to their lack of hard bones. For now there are far more questions than answers surrounding R. labebantur.