Mustafar

"This is outrageous!" lamented Nute Gunray, Viceroy of the Trade Federation and now nominative leader of the Commonwealth of Independent Systems. He stomped through the halls of the base they had been shuttled to by General Grievous mere days before, attended to by two other Neimoidian aides. "It has been too long since we have heard from Lord Sidious. Too long!"

"None of the usual channels are yielding responses, Viceroy," the first aide said. "We will try again, right away!"

"Go!" Gunray responded, waving dismissively with one hand. The aide turned and left, walking back up the hall to the communications center. Gunray ignored the other, muttering to himself.

He passed through the end of the narrow, brightly-lit hallway and entered a larger room with views of the apocalyptic environment outside. Two holotables dominated the floor, projecting images of the fighting on specific planets- as was the disturbing trend, the Jedi advanced on all fronts. Around the tables a number of droids worked, and various members of the Separatist Council milled about. The place had an air of aimlessness, and it served only to further annoy Gunray.

"What are you doing?" he asked, voice just below a shout in volume. "There is a war to fight!"

One of the OOM-series command droids turned about and took a few steps towards him. "Viceroy, the core ship on Utapau has ceased to transmit. We believe the planet is lost."

"Bah!" Gunray exclaimed, waving a hand. "I knew it was lost when you brought me word that General Grievous had been killed."

"Yes, Viceroy," the droid droned back, spinning on its heel and returning to the table.

"Defeated on Kashyyyk, defeated on Utapau; besieged on Boz Pity, Mygeeto, Cato Neimoidia, and Saleucami," another member of the Separatist Council, Poggle the Lesser, trilled in his own tongue. The Geonosian lumbered around a table, his cane clicking on the metal paneling of the floor. "General Grievous's campaign only weakened us, and provoked the Republic to greater action against us."

"Too many resources were pulled from other sectors to strike Coruscant," Wat Tambor, standing behind the far holotable, commented. "It left us defenseless in the Outer Rim."

"All for naught," Poggle the Lesser lamented, shaking his head. Jewelry jingled with each shake, irritating Gunray even further.

Present, but thus far silent, a CDE-S tactical droid announced its presence. "Viceroy, I have been interpreting data from the battles along the spiral arms of the galaxy. Great masses of Republic materiel have been employed to expand the war across so many fronts. Reports indicate the mass deployment of Jedi to the frontlines on many of these worlds."

"Yes, so?" Gunray asked, impatient.

The tactical droid continued as if he hadn't spoken at all. "My analysis shows that as we are driven back, the Republic stretches itself ever thinner to control the systems they take. They are no longer liberating worlds we have taken, they are conquering ours. This necessitates occupation forces, thus further draining their frontline units of manpower. As Foreman Tambor observed of our forces, the opposite is true for the Republic. We concentrated too much force in one sector, they have spread out across many.

"It is thus my analysis that the Republic can be struck again in any number of thinly-defended sectors, and with a more realistic selection of goals than Coruscant their military can be crippled. Coupled with the political instability following in the wake of the Supreme Chancellor's death at the hands of the Jedi, a rapid and well-targeted offensive could paralyze the Republic," the droid finished.

"Attack?" Poggle the Lesser asked, surprised. "We cannot possibly attack when we are on the defensive across the galaxy."

Gunray waved a hand. Mustafar was far from the Core, and news took longer to reach a planet such as Mustafar. This buoyed his mood greatly. "Death of the Chancellor? The Jedi killed Palpatine?"

Wat Tambor's head dipped, perhaps a sign of disappointment. "It has been news around the Core for days. How have you not heard of this by now?"

"I was busy trying to run a war!" Gunray objected weakly. In truth, he had simply been avoiding the news so he did not hear of additional defeats.

Tambor seemed unconvinced.

"It is precisely because we are perceived to be on the defensive that an offensive is recommended," the droid responded flatly, not distracted at all by the interjection. Poggle nodded thoughtfully, stroking his chin as the droid explained.

Gunray waved Poggle the Lesser off, approaching to stand opposite the super tactical droid, his face illuminated by blue light. His eyes were greedy, he needed a win to protect himself. The opportunists were everywhere, and he suspected Tambor over anyone else of seeking his downfall- politically or otherwise. If Palpatine truly was dead and the Jedi were to blame, the war could still be won. Palpatine's political talents had streamlined Republic bureaucracy and enabled an effective direction of the Republic war effort. Without him... there was an opening. "Attack where?"

The tactical droid tapped at a keypad along the side of the map, bringing up a planet. They all looked the same, and before the Viceroy could ask the droid intoned, "Ord Trasi. Yaga Minor."

"Shipyards," Wat Tambor observed, coming closer to the table. Now even he seemed intrigued.

"Indeed. Striking at the production capabilities of the Republic will hinder their efforts to increase the size of their navy so that it can cover all the space it must cover," the tactical droid responded. "Subsequent targets would include Bilbringi, Rendili, and ultimately Kuat."

"Kuat? Perhaps with the fleet that had struck Coruscant," Tambor replied. "We are too depleted to strike such a fortress."

"In open combat, yes," the tactical droid responded. "However, retasking of several squads of BX-series droids we can eliminate enough of their defensive installations to create a gap that allows a fleet within their defensive sphere."

The droid seemed a godsend to Gunray. All at once it offered answers to all of their problems. An offensive, at last! It had been only days since their last contact with Sidious, but they could not afford to wait for him to reestablish contact. "Find the commando droids, build the fleet you need. Keep me informed of your progress."

Tambor crossed his arms. "You cannot issue these orders unilaterally, the Council must approve-"

Poggle the Lesser tapped his cane impatiently on the floor, surprising both Tambor and Gunray. "This war began on Geonosis, and our production facilities have been repeatedly targeted by the Republic. My people suffer. This plan is better than any other I've heard since we've arrived on Mustafar."

"On that point, you are correct," Tambor admitted. "The Techno Union will support this plan."

The droid looked between the three, rotating its head slowly. "Orders will be issued now," it said, tapping again at the keypad. The images of Yaga Minor and Ord Trasi vanished, in their place a galaxy map. "The fighting at Mygeeto has taken almost all of the Republic's attention in its sector. Forces from Muunilinst and surrounding systems can be pooled into a formidable fleet. Ord Trasi will be the primary target, as it is less well-defended, and Yaga Minor will follow. Primary directives will be the maintenance of the shipyards and the production of reinforcements for our fleets, secondary directive will be the destruction of the shipyards before they fall back into Republic hands, should the situation arise."

"Very good," Gunray responded, turning to leave the table with Poggle the Lesser in tow.

"We should relocate soon. If the Republic has taken Utapau it will only be a matter of time before they can figure out where we went. I have my doubts General Grievous was very thorough covering our tracks." Tambor announced. "I suspect it will be a matter of days before they can sift through the data there and piece together where we departed to. I would be able to do it in hours."

"Then there is no time to lose," Gunray responded. He grabbed one of the many B-1 droids patrolling the room. "Prepare my shuttle, immediately!"

"Yes, Viceroy," it droned back, turning and starting off down the hall he'd entered through at a quick pace.

"Where will we go?" Poggle the Lesser asked.

Gunray thought. He racked his brains for what fortresses they had left to them. "Raxus Secundus. The Republic could not scratch the fleet there, I'm sure of it. I've had enough of these volcanoes."

"Yes, Raxus," Poggle the Lesser agreed, following Gunray up the hallway. "If a fortress is left to us, it is Raxus."

"Gather the rest of the Council, we leave immediately. And I want that tactical droid on my ship!" Gunray ordered, leveling a green finger at the aforementioned droid before passing through a conference room on his way to the landing pad.