Stargate: Reconnaissance is a novel by ROC publications and it continues the story of the original film.
Publishers Summary[]
Light-years from home, and only one step closer to hell, Stargate renegades Jack O'Neil and Daniel Jackson are plunged into an illusive paradise where an alien war could spell a mortal's doom...
With Hathor destroyed and her killer spaceship decimated, the Abydan refugees are awarded the privilege of first colonization. But their dream for the wilderness planet of Ballas is turned into a nightmare by a native species with a predatory instinct for survival - and a deadly ambition to win total Stargate control. Only O'Neil and Jackson can stop these armed feral warriors. But terminating their enemy's ultimate prize means destroying their own last hope of getting home alive...
Plot[]
Following Hathor's defeat, Daniel sorts through the list of StarGate addresses obtained from the Boat of a Million Years and locates a potenial planet for the Abydons to resettle. The planet, called Ballas, was not part of Ra's empire and is believed to be uninhabited. O'Neil leads a team of two marines and an Abydon named Imiseba to scout the planet for colonization.
On the other side, they discover the gate is another pyramid, similar to the one on Abydos, but less maintained. They also find recently chewed bones of an animal, and assume a predator was nesting there. Outside, they find a lush forested valley surrounded by mountains. Satisfied that there is no immediate danger, they return to Earth. Upon their return, the military holds a press conference to report on their findings. O'Neill and the marines give guarded responses, but Imiseba says the planet is safe and the Abydons should relocate there as soon as possible.
His words spark a massive outcry from the Abydons who insist on being allowed to leave, and from the general public who insist they be allowed to do so. Daniel, Sha'uri, Skaara, and Kasuf are caught completely offguard and hastily organize expedition supplies. Within a few months, the Abydons, along with Daniel, O'Neil, Feretti and several marines, head through the Gate and setup a camp some distance from the pyramid.
Once on Ballas, morale on the camp quickly plummets. Many Abydons grew comfortable living in 20th century lodgings and become frustrated at having to rough it. Others resent the continued presence of O'Neil and his marines who they feel are policing them and restrict them from the StarGate. Most of the blame falls on Daniel who is accused of both doing too much and not enough to help them. Imiseba, who hopes to replace Kasuf and the other Elders as leader, does his best to stir the pot and sew resentment against Daniel and the "Urt-men."
Ferretti and the other marines have been exploring and mapping the area around the camp. They find further evidence of a predatory animal in the area, which they dub a "hoodat." Paw prints reveal it to be some sort of large cat, but Ferretti's men are unable to capture one or find its lair.
After several months, Imiseba decides to make his move. He and his friend, Mahu, plots with their followers to blow up the StarGate in order to cut O'Neil and his men from Earth, and then kill them and take over the settlement. First, Mahu approaches O'Neil and insists he and his millitia men be allowed to take a shift guarding the StarGate unsupervised, as a gesture of trust. O'Neil reluctantly agrees.
That night, Mahu and his men arrive at the pyramid. When the marines leave, they take all the stores of C-4 stored nearby and wire them to the StarGate. But before they can detonate them, a large bipedal sabre-toothed cat creature attacks and kills Mahu and one other. The remaining militia open fire and give chase, but the cat escapes. The gunfire attracts the attention of Ferretti and the marines who arrive at the pyramid and spot the C-4, spoiling Imiseba's plans.
After securing the Gate, O'Neil puts Imiseba under house-arrest and organizes hunting parties to locate and kill the hoodat. Ferretti and a squad of marines head into the nearby hills, where they find a building completely overrun by dirt and foliage. As they explore, they find what appears to be a museum that depicts lizard aliens enslaving the cat creatures and training them to fight and serve. Before he can learn more, his team is attacked by a group wielding blast-lances.
The remaining search parties are all ambushed by the cat creatures, who have donned full body armor and blast-lances. During the fighting, its discovered that the armor is bullet-proof and enhances their strength and speed. O'Neil rallies the marines and Abydon militia to protect the Gate. Using the Earth made energy weapons and small-artillery, they manage to kill most of the hoodats, which are dubbed "Pussies" by the marines. However, a small few sneak past the perimeter and through the Gate. They destroy the portable dialing computer on their way to cover their tracks.
When the U.S. government hears about the attack, they order O'Neil and all marines to return to Earth, leaving the Abydons defenseless. O'Neil points out to General West that the hoodats had access to the dialing computer before leaving and they potentially know the location of Earth. West convinces the military to throw their support behind defending Ballas against a counter-attack to prevent the hoodats from using it as a beachhead. O'Neil brings helicopters, tanks, and a lot of small artillery through the Gate. He also rescues Ferretti, who survived his encounter with the hoodats.
Back on Earth, West learns that they can no longer dial Ballas to send more supplies. He realizes that means the hoodats have launched their attack and there's no way he can help his forces there.