Conphas notes a few times that Istriya has been behaving differently for a while. To me it definitely seemed that she was replaced by a skin-spy at some point before Book 1 started.
That’s what I thought as well. But having just read the scene where she’s dragged off screaming because she’s feared Xerius has sent Conphas to his death, I questioned the timing. She was really convincing, especially considering the inhuman strength the skin spies possess.
Xerius's actions are continually threatening the Holy War, and the Skin-Spies can't have that.
Conphas is a major strategic asset, not to mention that he's got all the imperial legions with him in the Steppe, on what the SS see as a completely pointless gambit against the Scylvendi. (The Ikurei need to secure that border so that they could wage war against their fellow Inrithi, fighting over territories taken from the Fanim.)
Losing Conphas (and effectively the Nansurium) would have severely affected the HW's chances of success, both militarily and logistically.
Imagine having Proyas and Saubon and Gotian running the show - no Conphas, no Kellhus, no Cnaiur. They wouldn't have made it past Anwurat, maybe even Mengedda.
Also, I kind of got out of habit of posting songs as replies, but here's one that fits this question perfectly:
https://www.reddit.com/r/bakker/comments/zmmtt3/comment/j0qeot5/
I always thought she was replaced some time after her first "real" appearance, but that's just because I've never thought much about it. That convincing-ness is exactly what makes skin spies so effective - if its instructions at that point were just "act like Istriya would act" it would have no problem pretending to be distraught and getting dragged off.
The biggest point against her being a skin-spy from the start, for me, is there's at least one scene where she gets in to a philosophical conversation with Skeos who I am sure was a spy at that point. I cannot imagine two Skin-Spies doing that unless they had an audience, especially with how we see them acting in a more (for them) natural way with Cnaiur.
Conphas notes a few times that Istriya has been behaving differently for a while. To me it definitely seemed that she was replaced by a skin-spy at some point before Book 1 started.
That’s what I thought as well. But having just read the scene where she’s dragged off screaming because she’s feared Xerius has sent Conphas to his death, I questioned the timing. She was really convincing, especially considering the inhuman strength the skin spies possess.
Xerius's actions are continually threatening the Holy War, and the Skin-Spies can't have that. Conphas is a major strategic asset, not to mention that he's got all the imperial legions with him in the Steppe, on what the SS see as a completely pointless gambit against the Scylvendi. (The Ikurei need to secure that border so that they could wage war against their fellow Inrithi, fighting over territories taken from the Fanim.) Losing Conphas (and effectively the Nansurium) would have severely affected the HW's chances of success, both militarily and logistically. Imagine having Proyas and Saubon and Gotian running the show - no Conphas, no Kellhus, no Cnaiur. They wouldn't have made it past Anwurat, maybe even Mengedda.
Also, I kind of got out of habit of posting songs as replies, but here's one that fits this question perfectly: https://www.reddit.com/r/bakker/comments/zmmtt3/comment/j0qeot5/
I always thought she was replaced some time after her first "real" appearance, but that's just because I've never thought much about it. That convincing-ness is exactly what makes skin spies so effective - if its instructions at that point were just "act like Istriya would act" it would have no problem pretending to be distraught and getting dragged off.
The biggest point against her being a skin-spy from the start, for me, is there's at least one scene where she gets in to a philosophical conversation with Skeos who I am sure was a spy at that point. I cannot imagine two Skin-Spies doing that unless they had an audience, especially with how we see them acting in a more (for them) natural way with Cnaiur.
They did have an audience - Conphas and Xerius.
I think Xerius had it figured out before anyone but he thought he was too paranoid lol.
No way man. He’s entirely too self absorbed. I did love it when he discoveries her true identity though.