Inside the Arquitens cockpit:

Officer 1: - Commander Cress. Our troops have taken over the supposed gossan refuge, but they report that the resistance was much less than expected. -

Cress: - Hmm. That's weird. What do the prisoners say about it? -

Officer 1: - They don't know anything about it, sir. -

Cress: - I thought that the gossan did not have very good relations with the rest of the inhabitants of Felucia. Do you know if there was a last minute change? -

Officer 1: - No, sir. -

Cress: - Interrogate them one more time. Be more "persuasive" if necessary. -

Officer 1: - As ordered, sir. -

Cress: - Are the troops in position? -

Officer 2: - Yes, sir. The scouts confirmed their suspicions. There is a caravan moving towards the central area of ​​Felucia. -

Cress: - Very good. liquidate them. -

Officer 2: - Yes, sir. -

Meanwhile in the forests of Felucia.

Mirana: - Uffff. It has been a very eventful night. -

Boil: - You don't even say it. I thought we wouldn't get rid of those stormtroopers. -

Wag Too: - Luckily Icarus was not wrong in his predictions. -

The three of them were at the head of the caravan that was moving towards the Village. At least a thousand gossan refugees were traveling in two small transports that did their best to remain unnoticed through the dense vegetation of Felucia. Barely a hundred of the refugees were armed, the rest were women, infants and the elderly, unfit for combat. Most of their warriors died trying to protect their families, making it possible to uselessly hold back the Imperial advance.

The spirits were on the ground, and the only thing that could be heard was the heavy tires of the transports rolling over the fertile soil of the jungle, while everyone went in silence, sore for the losses suffered. The sun was barely peeking into the panorama when:

https://youtu.be/0AwAbHkPoSE

Two walkers emerged from the brush and opened fire on the transport bringing up the rear. The heavy vehicle was blown into the air, accompanied by a violent explosion that killed more than half of the Gossan refugees at once.

Mirana: - Ambush! -

Boil: - Accelerate! speed up! - He yelled at the gossam who was piloting the transport.

The frightened pilot put his foot down on the accelerator, causing the transport to skid dangerously on the muddy ground, but luckily, the vehicle managed to regain traction before pulling away from the walkers while doing its best to avoid the walkers' gunfire.

Wag Too: - What are those things? -

Boil: - The new Imperial off-road vehicles. The AT-ST. -

Mirana: - His firepower is too much to be able to face him... Be careful! -

Mirana's scream was due to what she was seeing through the vehicle's windshield. Being frightened and confused, the driver was unable to see a pronounced root protruding from the uneven ground. At least a meter thick, the root was strong enough to topple the vehicle when its massive wheels ran over it. The heavy vehicle slid several yards, the refugees inside screaming in panic, until it finally fell on its side, skidding to a halt a few yards across the muddy ground.

Play it and keep reading:

https://youtu.be/C87eURhi7yk

Smoke billowed from the damaged vehicle, along with several sparks that spattered dangerously over the slick of fuel that slowly leaked from the transport's tanks. There were a few seconds of silence, until the rear doors of the vehicle were flung open behind a powerful paw from Mirana.

Mirana: - Quick! Fast! Everybody out! -

The refugees began to leave in terror, terrified by what had just happened. Boil, Wag Too, and the droids joined the retreat, trying to keep all the civilians safe. But the problems were just beginning.

Stormtrooper: - There they are! Open fire! -

A large number of stormtroopers peeked out from the vegetation as they opened fire on the unarmed refugees. In a desperate attempt, Mirana and Boil led the survivors into a wall of trees and giant mushrooms, trying to get some cover, while the droids did their best to hold off the Imperials. Many Gossan refugees lost their lives in the crossfire of Imperial blasters, and many of their fighters died trying to protect their families. The casualties were catastrophic.

Boil: - Alpha! Stand down! - He yelled at the commando droid, who was in the front row fighting alongside the droids of the Punitive Guard, doing his best to contain the stormtroopers.

Alpha: - Negative! If we withdraw, he will attack the civilians! -

Wag Too: - ¡Alfa! ¡No! -

Alpha: - It has been an honor, Commander! FOR THE SEPARATIST ALLIANCE! -

The commando droid charged headlong at the enemies, closely followed by the other droids present. Using what little cover the battlefield offered them, they managed to hold the enemy at bay while the gossan refugees reached the safety of the brush on the other side of the battlefield.

Thanks to their characteristics and the programming enhancements that Icarus had programmed into each of the thirteen droids, they were able to hold off the Imperial cordon and take down at least fifty stormtroopers. But the enemies were simply too many.

The droids fought fiercely as the white-armored soldiers inched closer. They would shoot with pinpoint accuracy, take down two or three stormtroopers, then go back into hiding behind the poor cover. Until the enemies got too close and began to flank them.

One by one, the black-marked droids began to fall as the crossfire pierced their circuitry. Until finally only one of them was left standing.

Alpha was crouching behind the cover provided by a four-foot-tall root. The blasters slashed close by, shaking the earth around them and splintering the wood each time they hit the root that guarded it. The droid turned around one last time, only to see how Boil, Mirana and Wag Too, the latter with tears in his eyes, yelled begging him to back off. But that was not an option, and he knew it.

His last gesture was to nod, before returning to the battle. He jumped onto the root that guarded him, accurately taking down any stormtroopers that got too close. He was shot in the chest, but his metal plates could take it without slowing his progress. He charged into an Imperial head-on, using the D-5 blaster to pierce its heart with a point-blank shot. He took the lifeless body of the man and used it as a shield, while he cut down the rest of the enemies that were approaching in all directions. But they were too many.

At least a dozen stormtroopers formed a circle around him, and despite his attempts to finish them off, Alpha couldn't resist a shot that took off his right leg. Losing his balance, he had to leave the body of the fallen soldier to grab onto the stem of a giant mushroom, only to be shot in the head, instantly melting his circuits. Not before managing to kill three other stormtroopers.

Don't Too: - NOOOOOOOOOOO! -

The lurmen's scream echoed through that area of ​​the forest as he continued to shoot the stormtroopers approaching the droid's body with his sniper rifle. But it was already in vain.

Boil: - ¡Wag Too! ¡Wag Too! ¡Oye! ¡Detente! -

The clone had to grab the lurmen from behind and throw him behind cover to prevent the shots coming from the other side of the battlefield from killing him. However, that did not stop the frustration of the lurmen, who was hitting the trunk of one of the giant mushrooms to try to vent his despair.

Boil: - Look! We have to get out of here! -

Mirana: - I know! I know! The gossan warriors won't last long either! -

Boil: - We have to call Icarus! Where is the transmitter!? -

The two humans raised their heads for an instant, only to see the heavy metal box with an antenna lying on the ground, at least ten meters away from where they were.

Mina: - ¡Cúbreme! -

Boil: - Are you crazy!? You will NOT arrive before...! -

Wag Too: - I'm coming! - He exclaimed as he left the cover towards the front.

Boil: -Wag Too! No!... Shit! Everyone! cover him up! -

Boil, Mirana, and the few more than ten armed gossam still standing began firing everything they had at the enemy formations so that the lurmen could reach the transmitter right in the middle of the battlefield. The Imperials did not cease fire, and the Lurmen was splashed dangerously close by blasters, but fortunately, he was able to slip onto a protruding root that gave him some cover while he managed to unbuckle the gossam's corpse's transmitter straps. And with the same luck that the lurmen had to get out, he managed to return to the protection of the trees or giant mushrooms without being shot.

Wag Too: - Here it is! -

Boil: - Quick! Contact the command post! -

Mirana: - That was stupid. -

Wag Too: - Yes. I know. - He said while pressing several buttons.

Despite the Lurmen's attempts, the device failed to pick up any signals.

Wag Too: - It doesn't work. -

Boil: - They must be cutting communications. It seems that we are alone. -

Mirana: - Everyone! Keep shooting! -

The heat of battle intensified once more. Mirana, Boil, Wag Too, and the now nine surviving gossans continued to fire relentlessly at the stormtroopers who were getting closer and closer. One hundred meters... Ninety meters... Eighty meters... The imperial soldiers simply could not be stopped. And there were many of them.

The ambush was a complete success. The rebels lost both of their transports and more than half of the refugees who managed to escape perished in the attempt. If one thing was clear, it was that whoever was in command of this operation had no intention of taking prisoners.

Now they were alone, between a rock and a hard place. It didn't matter how many stormtroopers they shot down, they just came out more and more. To Boil, they reminded him greatly of droid hordes that could number in the thousands. Whenever he knocked down one, he was replaced by five more. But these weren't the scraps he used to fight. They were living beings, mostly human given the racist policies of the Empire. But it was much more effective than the droids. And although inexperienced, they could maintain a more even battle. If it were one on one, of course.

But there were hundreds of them. The few remaining gossans fell one by one, until only Mirana, Boi, Wag Too, and two gossans were left doing their best to hold their ground as the Imperials closed in to flank them. The situation could not get worse. Or so they thought.

In the heat of the battle, they could hear an eerie metallic sound. Like the grinding of two pieces of metal colliding with each other, while powerful footsteps seemed to shake the earth and fell the trees that were in their path.

https://youtu.be/U9X1v8YKnVg

They were the AT-STs, who had finally arrived at that place in the mushroom forest. They could barely look up between their covers, and they could see with terror the imposing machines that were approaching little by little. Their powerful blaster cannons opened fire, slamming into the vegetation that barely provided them with any cover. But the next few shots might not miss. They had no chance of escaping alive on their own.