"They're this fort that's right between Whiterun Hold and Eastmarch, like at the very border, on the main road, and Whiterun and Windhelm have both withdrawn most of their troops enough that the fort was taken by bandits who are now charging extortionate amounts from people wanting to cross. And I'm livid at all involved but at least the people who are having a civil war might have a good enough reason for it.

"So I want to know what it could be."

"Ah."

"I should open with the caveat that I am not that well-informed about it."

"That's okay, I just—I trust you to not be willfully biased as I expect most other people to be."

Oh. That's flattering and he melts a little bit.

He takes a seat next to Ruby and begins.

"You've already read up on the Thalmor, right?"

"Yeah."

"They're—horrible. They have officers roam the land to kill people for worshipping Talos—"

"—they what?"

"I don't think they're meant to, I think they're just meant to arrest, but..." Shrug. "I'd guess the Empire can't afford to pick that fight or something."

Add one more group to the list of people Ruby needs to deal with then.

"And the jarl of Windhelm decided that was enough and started a rebellion to free Skyrim from the Empire so that we would not be subjected to the treaty with the Thalmor."

"That is actually a very good reason for a rebellion."

"Yeah. ...also he killed the High King, he's been saying the Empire weakens Skyrim and to prove that he challenged the High King to a duel and killed him. The rumours say that he Shouted him to death."

"...oh huh look, mysterious memory unlocked."

"—really? What is it?"

"About what Shouts are."

"Oh. Well I'm curious now, I don't really know what they are, there's just legends them and the Dragonborn—do you have memories about that?"

He nods. "Shouts, also called Thu'um, are phrases in the language of dragons, which is inherently magical; imbuing those phrases with intent makes them affect the world. They take years to learn. And the Dragonborn is supposedly a mortal with a dragon soul who can learn them instinctively just like dragons can."

"Could. They're all dead. And no Dragonborn has been seen in hundreds of years."

"—that I did not know. That they're all dead, that is."

"There was a great war, I don't trust the songs about how it went but purportedly mortals rebelled against dragon rule and killed them all."

"Huh."

"...anyway, isn't killing the High King and starting a civil war very destabilising by itself and wouldn't that weaken Skyrim, too?"

...he hadn't really thought of it that way. "I guess? But Ulfric Stormcloak must've thought it was worth it, to get rid of the Thalmor."

"Hmm. I suppose.

"Anyway, I'm planning on retaking the Towers."

He splutters. "You what?"