This was, however, a distraction, as two Lambda Shuttles had jumped in at the stern of the ship, as close as was possible, and latched on to opposite sides of the hull, where the engine room was. Immediately, they began cutting their way into the ship, and standing within the Lambdas, ready to take back the ship, were Special Missions Troopers. By the time the transmission began playing, the hull of the ship gave way, and fourty Special Missions Troopers stormed the engine room, taking aim at anything that presented a threat.

Captain Augustus Valerian
Star Destroyer Vanguard

"It looks like they don't want to save you, Captain. Jet, kill three of the bridge crew. Tuck, give the passengers a bit of fire. They're moving into the engine compartment? Seal off the doors and vent it into space." Three blaster shots followed, confirmed by a single moan of pain that stretched out into a death-rattle and the sobbing of Captain Gregor as he pleaded with them not to kill him.

The leader spoke again. "Imperial forces, back off this vessel. We will not hesitate to kill more hostages. Your actions just cost three men their lives. How much further will you push it?"

On the bridge of the Leveler, Commander Valerian stood, watching the feed. He shook his head at their unwillingness to back down. All for a group of three merchants locked up on Volus. It was ridiculous, and senseless... then again, all terrorists were. When the count down hit zero, Valerian did not blink however, and thus the game of Reussian roulette was over, for it had come to the chamber with the bullet in it, and he nodded to his tactical officer. Immediately, six quad turbolaser turrets opened fire on the bridge of the Jewel of Winter, with the desired effect of disabling the vessel and killing the terrorist leader. Unknown to Valerian, it would also possibly end the threat of the proton bomb for the leader did not have a dead man switch and needed to activate it in an amount of time that was unlikely to enable him to do so.

Captain Augustus Valerian
Star Destroyer Vanguard

The remaining seven regrouped under the leadership of one of the females, the second in command, and began to hurry their way to the cargo hold. It would not require being next to the explosive, only a few dozen meters away. It was getting that close that might well be the problem. The confusion of civilians though, was likely to hamper some of the Imperial assistance that came to rescue them. For now, the hijackers ignored the people about them who were looking to find cover and instead focused on their objective.

The TIE Fighters swarmed around the hull of the Jewel of Winter, in groups of four, ready for any attempt to escape by craft. On the bridge, Valerian watched, the Leveler still unmoved, as they boarding action was underway. "Major Kefka, is the vessel secure?" he asked on a secure comm frequency. "No, sir. I'm with a team that's taking over the ship's controls in the engine room, completely sealed off from the rest of the ship. I have a team securing the cargo hold now, and the Troopers that just came in are to secure the common areas and then do a room by room search, while their medics attend to the passengers," replied the seasoned and aged officer. Kefka was a lifer, through and through... he lived and breathed the Army, and had worked from a lowly Private up to his current rank through the Clone Wars til now, serving in the Judicial Forces previously. He was invaluable, and knew just about every op that it was possible for them to run by memory. This was one that had been practiced time and again, and every variable was taken in stride. The team of eight that were ahead, by now, had reached the cargo hold, and were sweeping it for anything amiss, including a bomb.

Captain Augustus Valerian
Star Destroyer Vanguard

The proton bomb had three methods of detonation. The first was the dead-man switch, set to go off if triggered and then released. That method had gone up in smoke, along with the bridge. The second method was a remote-activated five minute countdown, sent by a datapad from a certain distance. This method would not be practical, as the seven remaining members had barricaded themselves into a conference room and were prepared for a siege to the death against the Imperials. The third and final method was one they had not been informed of; a proximity detonation. Shiva's explosives expert had set the bomb to ensure that, should his agents be killed or otherwise incapacitated, the point would still be gotten across. Eight minutes after the proton bomb had been armed and the cargo hold shut, a rather simple droid brain came online, equipped with a detonator mechanism and life-sensing systems tied in with a range sensor.

It was here that the Imperials had made their error. The Imperials had practiced time and time again for a hostage crisis; perhaps even for the case that the hijacking terrorists might be willing to sacrifice their own lives in exchange for their beliefs. It was for this reason that it seemed odd that the Imperials had not worked more slowly; more cautiously. The cargo hold was in a remote part of the vessel, of course, off limits to passengers, and with the crew tied up, so to speak, there had been only a slim chance of someone triggering the explosive. In this case though, it worked as planned. The life sign sensors detected the Imperial troops outside the cargo hold. The trigger was set in motion so that well before they even fully made their way in, well before the doors could even be fully opened, the droid brain detonated the explosive.

A proton bomb was a massively powerful weapon, capable of destroying buildings and ships from without with quite some ease. Inside an already damaged passenger liner, it would be spectacular. The ensuing explosion was likely to take the Jewel of Winter, as well as the pair of docked Lambda shuttles and the MAAT gunships. Whether or not the TIE fighters were destroyed by concussive force or debris hurled from the ship was questionable; it all depended on how close their pilots were flying to the craft in question.

Added (30 Jan 2011, 2:40 PM)
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Shiva laughed as he read the reports from his informants. Word got out, as it always did. It had not made the major news networks yet; the Empire was likely covering up certain things, he had no doubt, but word spread. There had been merchant ships around Corellia and traders tended to talk in hushed tones over drinks and to friends when they thought nobody was listening. There was no denying the fact that Imperials had messed up quite badly. Hundreds of civilians and Imperial soldiers dead. Tens of millions of credits of equipment lost. Oh, this one would be good when it hit the news stands. For now though, there was more to escalate, much more to do and plan. It wouldn't be wise for Shiva to remain at Rinn if the axe fell; he had every intention of keeping his operation mobile for now. Credits flowed in... and death for the Imperials flowed out.