The Empty Chair " The culmination of a saga twenty - two years in the making . " The Empty Chair is a Pocket TOS novel – the fifth and final novel in the " Rihannsu " series – written by Diane Duane . Published by Pocket Books , it was first released in . Summary . The Free Rihannsu Fleet , along with " Enterprise " and " Bloodwing " engage nine Grand Fleet vessels at Artalierih . During the battle , both the Klingons and the colony ship " Tyrava " appear . All of the Klingon ships except one are destroyed , and the Grand Fleet vessels are either co - opted by the Free Rihannsu or destroyed . Kirk and Ael meet Veilt tr ' Tyrava , the captain of " Tyrava " , and they begin to formulate battle plans for their next big engagement , which they believe will be at a star named Augo . Meanwhile , on ch ' Rihan , Arrhae becomes increasingly worried about maintaining her cover during the period of civil unrest . She is even more alarmed to learn that " The Three " ( the triumvirate of Praetors that secretly dominates the government ) have sent a cloaked long - range probe towards the Terran system , carrying a nova bomb that will cause a cataclysmic ion storm and wipe out all life on Earth . The battle at Augo begins according to plan , until most of the Grand Fleet shows up , equipped with a new cloaking device that renders them completely undetectable . However , the battle also marks the appearance of several Starfleet vessels , along with " Kaveth " , another supership like " Tyrava " . Another ( though unknown ) advantage of the Free Rihannsu is that Arrhae convinced one of " The Three " ( the triumvirate of Praetors that secretly dominates the government ) to divert ten ships from Augo that might have led to Grand Fleet ' s victory . Several days after Augo , while at the market , Arrhae discovers that Ffairl , whom she previously knew as a steward on board " Gorget " was , in reality , a Federation spy like herself . They plan to help the Free Rihannsu fleet when they arrive at ch ' Rihan On board " Bloodwing " , Ael is devastated when she realizes that her friend and chief surgeon , tr ' Hrienteh , is in reality a Grand Fleet spy , and that was how Grand Fleet knew to send so many ships to Augo . The Free Rihannsu fleet is victorious in their invasion of ch ' Rihan , largely because the Three foolishly send thousands of troops to ch ' Havran , sparking off the uprising they were trying to prevent , and because much of ch ' Rihan ' s ground forces are unwilling to fight against their own people . Even with forewarning , Starfleet is unable to intercept the nova bomb before it impacts the sun , but in the nick of time , " Enterprise " and " Bloodwing " ' s crew manages to cause a reaction in the Eisn system ' s star ( which ch ' Rihan and ch ' Havran orbit ) which " synchronizes " with Sol ' s star and defuses the reaction . The Ruling Three flee , and are later turned over to the new government . Several new Senators are chosen ( including Arrhae ) , and Ael ( much to her own consternation ) becomes the first Empress of the Rihannsu , with the " Enterprise " crew ' s full approval . Kirk , who was under secret orders from the Federation President himself to retrieve a vital piece of technology from the Romulans , is nonplussed when Ael voluntarily turns it over to him . She adds that she cannot guarantee that the Romulan Empire which she plans to rebuild and restore honor to will always see eye - to - eye with the Federation , especially after her death , whenever that comes . Kirk understands , and assures her that the Federation prefers an honorable warrior like her to a cabal of genocidal tyrants like the Three . When he returns to Earth , Kirk cuts loose the banner carrying Ael ' s name that he hung from an olive tree and lets it drift into the sea , Ael ' s name and honor having been restored in her homeland . Memorable quotes . " " I promised the captain there would be no creative physics ! " " " " This is all your fault . " " References . chicken sandwich ; cloaking device ; coffee ; ; Firefalls of Gal Gath ' thong ; fizzbin ; plomeek soup ; poker ; Sigma Iotia II ; tribble s