Nagase

For other characters with similar names, see Kei Nagase.

Nagase
Biographical Information
Other Names and Callsigns	Ridgeback 2 Ridgeback 1 Edge
Affiliations	Ridgeback Squadron United Nations Forces Task Force 118
Equipment	ASF-X -Ridgebacks-
Physical Description
Gender	Female
Hair Color	Black
Eye Color	Black/Brown
Skin Type	Caucasian
Appearances
Ace Combat Infinity

"I swear, I'll kill them all!"

― Nagase during Operation Override

Nagase, almost always referred to as Edge, was the second-in-command pilot of the Ridgeback Squadron, the elite squadron of the United Nations Forces. After Slash's death during Operation Override, she took over as flight lead until the squadron was merged into Task Force 118 following the operation.

History

Nagase likely held her spot as Slash's wingman for a long time; they worked in perfect harmony during all of their engagements, and she (usually) had no trouble following his command. It is implied that she and Slash had a personal relationship beyond the squadron, but it is never confirmed.

The only time Nagase has been confirmed to go against her flight lead was during Operation Override, in which she attempted to freely engage the numerous targets in Tokyo. Slash warned her to stay in formation, to which she reluctantly agreed. After the QFA-44, piloted by Camilla and escorted by MQ-90Ls, made its appearance, Nagase accidentally broke formation to engage the UAVs. Instead of reprimanding her again, Slash followed her incentive and ordered the squadron to break and engage the UAVs at will.

Slash single-handedly shot down the remaining UAVs, to which Nagase responded with amazement. However, two more UAVs entered the battle zone, one of which shot a laser through Slash's wing, prompting the pilot to hand over his command to Nagase and eject from his aircraft. After ejecting, the UAVs killed him using lasers attached to sensors that detected pilot helmets. Nagase lost her focus and became temporarily clouded by revenge, attempting to attack the QFA-44 on her own and shoot it down as fast as possible. Viper, lead of Bone Arrow Squadron, tried to quickly convince her to join their formation and keep the rest of her flight alive. She initially refused, but realized that she was endangering the squadron and complied. She shot down the remaining UAVs, and attempted to shoot down the QFA-44, but Reaper eventually took the kill. Following this, she led the rest of her squadron to shoot down the Aigaion-class heavy command cruiser that had been stationed in the area. Once again, Bone Arrow Squadron were the ones to shoot it down, notably Reaper stealing the finishing blow. Nagase gave him the nickname "Grim Reaper" after his actions and his emblem.

The United Nations and Arrows Air Defense and Security formed Task Force 118 following this engagement, and Ridgeback Squadron joined Bone Arrow Squadron as the first members of the Task Force.

Personality

Edge initially is very narrow-minded, yet she follows her squad leader's orders without fail. She at first seems to react hostily to the Bone Arrows, especially Reaper. She makes it no secret that she does not appreciate how better he is at taking down enemies than her. However, eventually she begins to admire and respect him for his skill and courage, and is willing to follow him into battle.

Trivia

• Since Reaper became the number-one ace in the Task Force, it is implied that Edge may become his second-in-command, but it has not been confirmed yet.
• Unlike the Edge in Ace Combat 5, who is warm, sweet and gentle, she is stubborn, rash, hot-tempered and cynical, and speaks rudely to Reaper in the first few missions they fly together. This seems to be because she thinks he is nothing but a glory-seeking war dog who fights simply for profit and recognition.

Gallery

• 

  A color photo of Nagase, next to Viper, Goodfellow, and Omega