Most accomplished trainers had more than one Pokémon at their side.
But no matter how their teams changed, there was always one Pokémon they kept with them.
Their ace, their core, their partner in everything...
There were many names for it, but once a trainer made that choice, it rarely changed.
Some scholars believed a special bond existed between trainers and their ace Pokémon. That bond could greatly enhance a Pokémon's ultimate battle strength.
They pointed to the Elite Four and Champions of various regions, as well as tournament winners, to support the theory.
The conclusion was clear: all of them had an irreplaceable Pokémon, one they habitually relied on to overcome most difficulties in battle.
Yet no one had found a reliable system for determining how much choosing an ace affected its strength, or for helping trainers identify and choose one.
Only the experience Juan had accumulated as a Gym Leader let him recognize what had happened when Aggron and Baimu shouted together to snap Shiny Milotic out of its Infatuation: Baimu already had his undisputed ace Pokémon.
What a pity.
Juan had thought that, since Baimu had been working with Pokémon for less than a year, he might not have chosen his true ace yet. But outstanding trainers, it seemed, were no slower than anyone else.
"My plan for a third-generation successor..."
Juan looked forlornly at Baimu, who was chatting with his Pokémon with a broad smile. His heart gave a painful squeeze.
It felt like eagerly going to pull from a card pool, only to discover he had missed the limited banner.
Force him to change his mind?
Controlling another person's will was neither Juan's style nor consistent with the gentlemanly etiquette he had always observed. It would also stray far from the principles of a Gym