Ema Skye was introduced as an assistant in Rise from the Ashes, the fifth case of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. She was reintroduced as a detective in Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney and became a forensic investigator at an unspecified time between the events of that game and Spirit of Justice. She served as Phoenix’s assistant in the fifth case of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney and the detective in Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney and Spirit of Justice, in addition to appearing in both Ace Attorney Investigations games.

Ema was born in either 2000 or 2001. Her parents died in a car accident when she was very young, leading to her being raised by her older sister Lana. As she grew older, Ema developed a strong interest in forensics, which Lana encouraged. Lana’s connections as a detective also brought Ema into contact with Miles Edgeworth, whom she came to idolize, and multiple other figures within the local police force.

When the investigation of the killings committed by Joe Darke drew to a close, an unexpected power failure led to Darke escaping from interrogation. He found his way into Lana and her superior Damon Gant’s office, where Ema was. Darke attempted to harm Ema, but Neil Marshall intervened and the two fought. Ema attempted to break up the fight and shoved both of them, knocking them unconscious before fainting herself. When she regained consciousness, Marshall was dead and Darke back in custody.

After what came to be called the SL-9 Incident, Lana grew distant, though Ema remained hopeful that things would eventually return to normal. Two years later, Lana was implicated in the murder of Bruce Goodman, one of the detectives involved in SL-9. Despite Lana confessing, Ema refused to believe Lana was guilty, seeking the help of Phoenix Wright to investigate the murder and prove Lana’s innocence. Ema assisted Wright during the latter’s investigation and the two ultimately succeeded in not only proving Lana’s innocence but uncovering the true culprit behind both Neil Marshall’s death and Bruce Goodman’s death: Damon Gant.

As Lana had still assisted Gant in fabricating evidence, she couldn’t look after Ema while serving out her sentence. As such, Ema was sent to live with an unnamed coroner in Europe whom Lana was friends with.

Roughly two years later, Ema returned to the United States while on vacation, briefly reuniting with Edgeworth and helping him and Kay Faraday uncover the truth behind the death of Colin Devorae. A month later, she returned once again to the United States, taking advantage of her knowledge of English to serve as an interpreter for a professor of hers. Once again, her assistance proved instrumental in Edgeworth’s work, helping him uncover the truth behind the deaths of Jill Crane and Di-Jun Huang’s body double.

Seven years later, having completed her studies, Ema returned to the United States in the hopes of finally becoming a forensic investigator. However, she failed the proficiency test and was instead made a regular detective, which she resented. To make matters even more frustrating for her, the prosecutor she typically worked with (Klavier Gavin) had a way of pressing her buttons and Wright had been disbarred.

While investigating the murder of Pal Meraktis, Ema met Wright’s adoptive daughter Trucy, as well as defense attorney Apollo Justice. Though initially dismissive of both of them, she opened up quickly upon learning of their connections to Wright. With her help, Justice uncovered the truth behind Meraktis’s murder. She was later tasked with security duty for a Gavinners concert, which she greatly resented, though this enabled her—along with Justice—to be among the first people at the scene when Romein Letouse was murdered. Her assistance again helped Justice uncover the truth. When Drew Misham was murdered, she was sent to investigate both the murder and the art forgery he engaged in, visibly excited to be able to use a special machine that scanned forged paintings. Her assistance again helped Justice find the real killer.

It's unclear what exactly Ema did in the subsequent year other than that she retook the proficiency test and passed, becoming a forensic investigator as she had hoped. Her glee at having achieved her dream was cut short, however, when was tasked with investigating a murder allegedly committed by Trucy Wright, whom she had grown attached to. She was assigned to work with Prosecutor Nahyuta Sahdmadhi for the case, and though Trucy was proven innocent, Sahdmadhi nevertheless voiced his appreciation for Ema’s work. She traveled with Sahdmadhi to Khura’in to assist him in investigating the death of Tahrust Inmee, reuniting with Phoenix Wright in the process. The defendant, Maya Fey, was defended by Wright, who proved her innocent. Some time after returning to the United States, Ema investigated the death of Archie Buff, also serving as a witness in a civil trial over rightful ownership of the Founder’s Orb. She then returned to Khura’in to investigate the death of Inga Karkhuul Khura’in. There, she assisted in discovering that the defendant, Dhurke Sahdmadhi, was dead and secretly being channeled, which in turn played a role in exposing Queen Ga’ran as Inga’s killer, ultimately leading to Ga’ran being ousted and her niece Rayfa being installed on the throne. Ema returned to the United States afterwards and was tasked with investigating the death of Dumas Gloomsbury. As the prosecutor on this case was Miles Edgeworth, she was especially eager, though the defendant was ultimately acquitted. She was last seen as a guest at a recreation of Sorin Sprocket and Ellen Wyatt’s wedding, angrily chasing Larry Butz for having caught the bouquet.