During the Imperial Era, the Galactic Empire operated an Imperial Academy for training stormtroopers on the planet Uyter's Central City. This academy was part of a galactic–wide network of Imperial Academies set up by the Empire to train officers and soldiers for the vast Imperial Military.
Following the Battle of Endor, the New Republic launched a renewed offensive against the Galactic Empire, whose leadership had been decapitated with the death of Emperor Palpatine aboard the second Death Star. The planet Uyter was swept up into the Galactic Civil War. New Republic soldiers attacked the Uyter stormtrooper academy and closed it down. The New Republic soldiers were aided by locally recruited farmboys, who were armed with pitchforks, spanners, and blunt instruments. At least a dozen stormtroopers were killed during that battle.
Following the battle, the boy Pade and several adolescents convinced a Nimbanel hoverbus driver to drive them to the Imperial Academy to enlist, unaware that New Republic forces had already captured and shut down the academy. Pade had been abandoned by his parents and had no one to turn do. A bearded New Republic soldier met the driver at the bus stop and ordered him to return the youths to their families.
Pade recounted his plight to the New Republic soldier and asked if he was going to kill the prospective recruits. The soldier assured him that the New Republic did not gun down young cadets. Taking pity on Pade, the soldier made arrangements for the bus drive to take the older youths to Riverbreaker, where a shuttle was waiting to take prospective recruits to the New Academy on Chandrila's Hanna City. Out of gratitude, Pade thanked the soldier and said May the Force be with you.
The Battle in Central City first appeared in an interlude chapter in Chuck Wendig's 2015 novel Aftermath, the first installment in Star Wars: The Aftermath Trilogy and part of the multimedia Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens series. The chapter is told from the point of view of a supporting character Pade.