The Dregs

by Thomas J. Devens

The lords have fallen.
But ever shall there be those that vie for power.
Those that seek opportunity in death.

Prince Ivar’s body burned, one more corpse upon the pyre.
One more casualty of the Battle of Torglen.
His brother Vlayan makes claim for the throne and control of Volgsland.

Willuck awakes amid the chaos, broken and bloodied.
Hope has died. Willuck is dying.
Another of the lost. A vagrant in a war-torn land.
One more wandering husk in need of a friend. And a purpose.

A young sorcerer seeks to prove himself.

A jaded guard loses purpose.

A motley band marches for vengeance.

As the kingdoms burn, the survivors of war claw their way from the mud.
Seeking purpose. Seeking direction.
Seeking their place, no longer beneath the heel of their rulers.

178 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 30, 2024

About the author

Thomas is the author of the Fall of Emros Saga, his first series of gritty epic fantasy. He released his first novel Stone & Shield in 2020. A foundry worker by day, he currently resides in the Hudson Valley region of New York state.

Outside of working and writing, he prefers his time spent around a campfire with a few beers.

Reviews

[Helyna Clove]

I read this novella for the indie novella competition, SFINCS. The following review is my own personal opinion as a judge and does not reflect the views of the team as a whole.

The Dregs by Thomas J. Devens is a grimdark fantasy novella that through a desperate last mission of its cast of ragged survivors, shows us the horrors of war and the consequences of the misuse of power.

The Battle of Torglen is over, its armies marching in from all corners of their divided continent done slaughtering each other for now. In the aftermath, survivors stumble through the burned and blood-soaked fields, searching for a reason to take their next step. Willuck, a butcher-turned-soldier, is one of these survivors. He just watched a commander of his die, taking with herself the last hope that Willuck had for justice and for a better tomorrow. As he leaves the dead behind, joining a ragged group of three other survivors, all from different, enemy lands, but united in their scorn of the politics that got them there, he also has to contend with the news that the high price they all paid was for nothing—a tyrannical king is dead, but his place will soon be filled by his not-at-all better successor. In a close-by town, Rasp, a young farmer with magical capabilities is just now in front of this new tyrant, proving his skills so he could become another cog in a machine of conquest. Looking on is a guard, Ilanya, who has lost her sister in the last battle and is starting to realize that loyalty and hope for honor simply aren’t worth selling her soul anymore. As the novella progresses, these different characters form alliances and/or fall into conflict when Willuck and the rest of the dregs decide set off on one more dangeous quest…

The world of The Dregs is one where good does not win and hope fails in the face of corrupt and greedy rulers that care nothing for the life of another human being. It is a cold, cruel land, where war is constant, and it is always the poor and the powerless that suffer the whims and passions of the nobility. Among this grimness, there is something incredibly empowering about taking your fate inside your hand, even if it is the last thing you do, if it results in some small measure of justice, and that is exactly what the novella is building on. We are dropped into a hopeless, bleak situation and we watch it become bleaker and more hopeless, and what we get is maybe a few flickers of goodness and light before the end. A man who killed dozens saves another man. Soldiers from enemy armies form an alliance; a disillusioned guard plays with thoughts of rebellion against her corrupt rulers; a young man realizes his monstrous powers might both doom and save him. As a group of these lost souls decide they are willing to give their lives for even the possibility of things becoming better, or for revenge, or simply just for one last proof of their agency, the novella forces us to face all-ecompassing despair and death and search and grab for the small moments of humanity and hope present, and I appreciated this intention a lot.

The continent, peoples, and history of the Fractured Kingdoms can be grasped by recalling the many examples of medieval epic fantasy we have in literature, however, the world-building is far from flat and clearly has a lot of thought put into it, evidenced by the bits of context we get throughout the story and the songs/poems serving as short epigraphs in between the chapters that talk about rulers, warriors, and battles of old. These verses are interesting additions to the work, although more often than not, they break the flow and prose of the story a bit. Even with these, we don’t get to know a lot about the magic, or Power, present in this world, but I really enjoyed the one type of magic we do encounter through the character of Rasp. The writing style is straightforward and embodies the gritty, bloody feel of the setting and the topic well—though it does perhaps become a bit overwhelming in its relentlessness occasionally. The characters we encounter are well-handled, diverse, and interesting enough, but I definitely felt like the characterisation suffers from the low pagecount, making it harder to truly know and root for the unfortunate souls. I especially wished for more interactions between the group before the main parts of the action to develop their relationships better, thus allowing me to be more emotionally involved in the violent, bloody finale of their story.

In the end, The Dregs crosses the finish line as a satisfying, brutal story of defiance and bravery that can invoke strong emotions in contrast of the misery it depicts. I think lovers of the genre will find a lot to get immersed in here.

[Alan]

Full review on Before We Go Blog: https://beforewegoblog.com/sfincs-rev...


The Dregs by Thomas J. Devens is a multi-POV Grimdark novella with a thematic interest in the futility and brutality of war, as well as the dangers of corruption and sadism in higher levels of government. In that way, it feels sadly relevant to present circumstances in the United States and elsewhere, featuring the kind of villains who in the past may have been critiqued for being too over-the-top, but who now (unfortunately) feel all too realistic. Devens's marketing of the book--its cover and blurb--gives an excellent sense of its genre and target audience. Fans of Grimdark that's focused on warfare and its aftermath are most likely to enjoy this one, and I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Ed McDonald's Blackwing. There's also a little of the texture and colour palette of The Witcher 3 to the novella's atmosphere and focus (it's possible this comparison might extend to the Witcher books as well, but as I haven't read them, I don't want to mischaracterize either work). That said, I did find that the areas in which The Dregs had the potential to truly excel and stand out from the pack were occasionally underserved, and that there were some tonal inconsistencies in the prose later in the book that undermined somewhat the seriousness of what Devens otherwise seemed to be working toward.

In the aftermath of a particularly brutal battle, a ragtag group of survivors (the titular dregs) struggles homeward while attempting to find a healer who can tend to their mortally wounded. The magically inclined, including those with the ability to heal, are largely controlled by the aristocracy, however, and so finding someone capable of offering the necessary level of help proves challenging. Elsewhere, a group of sorcerers is escorted to see the king and in order to be trained in their respective arts. Although The Dregs features a number of point of view characters, two in particular stand out as central players. Willuck, one of fleeing soldiers, has just witnessed the death of his rebel commander, whose demise in the novella's prologue manages to tug on the heartstrings despite the audience's short time with her. Willuck is, however, also severely wounded himself, and it is his injury, as well as the group's general need to flee the site of battle that largely propels the first half or so of the narrative. Meanwhile, a young sorcerer named Raspart (Rasp) has been recruited to serve the aristocracy. Unbeknownst to Rasp's recruiters (who in many ways are more like jailers), Rasp's Power lies not with pyromancy or the more salubrious forms of magic, but necromancy. Over the course of the novella, Rasp, Willuck, and several more characters, come into conflict with the evil Lord Vlayan, and it is ultimately the need to remove Vlayan from power that becomes the focus of the story.

Devens's prose is, by and large, very smooth. It's clear he's skilled at a technical level, and this helps buoy the reader along easily, despite what might otherwise be a very dense fantasy full of unfamiliar names. Very occasionally, there are some tense issues, but for me The Dregs feels exceptionally polished. There were also, sprinkled throughout, some quite lovely and/or brutal and affecting images and lines. Because the prose is very technically strong, it seems to me that Devens has the skills to be able to intentionally break with grammatical necessity and lean into voice. On the occasions when Devens does so, the writing really shines and Devens's potential is at its peak. These instances (the highlighted quotation in this review is one example, as is the opening to the novella's accompanying short story) reveal Devens's ability to construct setting and atmosphere through character and authorial voice--no small skill. Where Devens occasionally stumbles is in consistency of tone, particularly toward the end of the novella (and this, I feel, is interrelated with some of the issues I have with character and focus). For the most part, the world of The Dregs is one that presents fantasy through the lens of realism. This appears in service to Devens's interest in the day-to-day struggles of his characters, and allows him to critique war through a presentation of its impact on those who lack social capital in the novella's monarchist and imperial context. In contrast, however, the text is peppered with phrases that feel plucked from an almost cartoonish commercial context. Dialogue like, "Let's finish this!," "This ends here," and "Your taint upon the world ends here!" feels out of place against the surrounding proset. It's not that there's necessarily a problem with dialogue like this in and of itself, but it does undermine some of what Devens has otherwise built up, as well as the work's darker tone.


The worldbuilding in The Dregs feels elaborate in the sense that it's clear Devens has put a lot of work and thought into its details. The somewhat fractured world of the characters--war-torn and embittered--feels believable and as though there is a larger iceberg submerged beneath the surface of the novella. That said, there's nothing that particularly makes the world stand out to me against any number of other epic fantasy worlds, and particularly ones in this subgenre. In some ways, this works to the novella's benefit. Epic and secondary fantasy universes are often a weakness in short form fiction, simply for the reason that the author has very little page time in which to provide necessary context for the reader. This can lead to awkward infodumps that slow down current action, or confusion when context is missing. Devens avoids any clunky infodumping, and I was never confused. While both of these are to Devens's credit, however, I felt a lack of investment in the politics or details of the world precisely because it feels as though these details could be substituted for those from any number of similar worlds or series. There are specifics, but it doesn't feel as though they matter. A generous sprinkling of poetry throughout The Dregs adds additional glimpses at the world's lore and at national or ethnic perspectives on historical and present conflict, but for the most part these were disruptive rather than enlightening, feeling clunkier at the line level than Devens's more accomplished prosecraft.

A lack of a particularly original world isn't, I would argue, necessarily a drawback depending on a work's focus. If the intent is to emphasize character work or an unusual prose style, etc, it may be an asset if the reader can largely fill in the worldbuilding blanks based on past reading experience. I think this is true of The Dregs, which in many ways works best as a character piece. It doesn't matter what world the characters occupy, because their struggles are both universal and deeply personal. Willuck and Rasp in particular are compelling and likeable. Although this is a grim and gritty universe, they demonstrate an empathy, loyalty, and selflessness that makes them both easy to root for. There are additional POVs--mostly notably a palace guard and fantasy-cocaine addict named Ilanya, who spends The Dregs questioning her loyalty to Lord Vlayan--but by and large it's Willuck and Rasp who demonstrate the most depth and who move the plot forward. While there's action aplenty in the novella, it was during Willuck and Rasp's private, personal reflections that Devens's skills made themselves most apparent. Specifically, there's a beautiful and heartbreaking scene toward the end of the novella that featured Willuck's reminiscences on a more peaceful time and the home he'd been forced to leave. I was impressed by Devens in the passage, and I would have liked to have seen him lean into these moments slightly more through the novella. While I hoped that things would turn out well for Willuck and Rasp, for example, I didn't feel the emotional ache I longed for and that I feel like Devens is more than capable of eliciting from the reader, with just a bit more awareness of where his (and the novella's) storytelling strengths actually lie. The world and its themes are things we've seen before; this liberates the text and allows for the potential to emphasize deep character work, emotionally rich prose, and the specifics that make a common set of thematics worthwhile engaging with in this particular story. While we do see a glimmer of this, I wanted Devens to commit wholeheartedly. For The Dregs to be able to do such character work and focus on plot and world, I feel it would need to be longer so that the details of that world to start to matter to the reader. A clearer focus on character in The Dregs would have helped me as a reader know where to focus my own attention. As is, the pacing is hurt slightly by a certain listlessness in the plot, which comes off as though it ought to be character-focused, but perhaps is trying to be more world and plot-based.

Aside from some of the more emotional, quieter character moments, one of the novella's strengths lies in key, brutal moments that showcase Rasp's abilities. Necromancy is often fascinating in fantasy, since its positioning in a secondary world can enrich the reader's sense of the moral and ethical positions of both specific characters, and that world's prevailing powers. As a horror fan and author, I'm also just a sucker for some cool and unique grotesquerie, and Devens provides. That Rasp plays into the heroic farmboy archetype, further emphasizes the the potency of the horror during moments when he's forced to use his powers, since his own reactions to what he's capable of lend an emotional weight to the scenes. One of the very successful layers of characterization in The Dregs lies in how Devens parallels Rasp's growing confidence in himself with a more mature understanding of the ways in which his raw ability's potential to harm and cause violence is neither marker of his inherent taintedness, nor something that he ought to regard as uncritically good or helpful.

While my critiques may seem harsh, I do want to emphasize that Devens is clearly exceptionally talented and skilled, and that it's likely that die-hard fans of this type of story may not care about the originality of the world vs. its focus. For some readers, the comfort of familiarity is an important (even essential) part of the reading experience. In some ways, it's precisely because Devens so clearly teases a ability to hook the reader with strong character work that I'm hungry for him to showcase more--to lean into the ways prose and style can communicate character voice, and to really push the depth and vulnerability of the emotions we see on page. Overall, The Dregs is a competent work in the genre, and I have a feeling Devens is one to watch, though I feel this particular novella suffers from a little unevenness and forgettability. It's nonetheless a novella I can see myself recommending to the right reader, given the quality of the prose and presentation.

[Livia Elliot · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Dregs is a grim and visceral novella in the series of Vermin of The Old Premise. It works perfectly as a standalone, and it captures the essence of the grimdark genre. It is a sordid, dark read told with an atmospheric prose that's unique and engaging.

Although there are two other works on this universe, they are all standalones, and The Dregs can be read on its own. Something to note, is that The Dregs begins in the same battle than the series' first entry, The Scroungers, but follows a different crew as they go in a path pretty different from that of The Scroungers. There are some mentions of characters and events which, if you have read the first novella are thoroughly enjoyable, linking both stories and adding plenty to the bigger world. However, these links are presented in such a way that a reader new to the series can follow up without a problem.

In terms of narration, The Dregs maintains the same style of The Scroungers. This is a multi-pov story, and the chapters follow different characters. Sometimes, they stories begin very far away from each other, but Devens has masterfully woven them into a single plot that converges to a central theme towards the end. Between each PoV chapter, we get a poem chapter; these are not always poems, sometimes songs, myths, or other tales (always in poem form) that convey either context (e.g., sharing a relevant legend) or add to how the events of the novella are perceived by others.

Devens doesn't disappoint. Both his prose and poetry are masterfully achieved, adding to the overall sentiment of the world.

Something that I love of this novella is that, at its core, it is grimdark--but it is never explicit. There is an incredible amount of bloodshed, but it is told in a way that's evocative and atmospheric, without being overly descriptive. Devens communicates the toll that the killing takes on the narrators, emotionally and physically... and once that settles, the story becomes darker.

I particularly liked how the author played with the motivation in this story, while being truthful to the genre. A spoiler-lite commentary follows. The author is quite deft into making the reader root for specific characters, even though they're doomed. There are events that sow that false hope, only to reassert that this is, in fact, a grimdark story. It is very well done, and the ending got me both angry and shocked, stunned and satisfied because it was perfect for the story.

Overall, this is a quick-to-read novella, told with an atmospheric, visceral prose that fosters all the feels while remaining truthful to the grimdark genre. If you are a fan of Joe Abercrombie, you have to read Devens' work.

[S. Bavey · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the first words of The Dregs we are thrust into a brutal and bloodthirsty world of unrelenting violence and gore. The Dregs is grimdark fantasy at its finest.
The novella begins with a sorry group of survivors of a bloody, filthy war who band together in their despair at the loss of all hope. A despot has been toppled in the war but his successor will not be any better. These characters are seemingly hopeless leftovers of war, left for death. But humanity always fights for survival whatever the odds, and these characters are far from giving up. They tend to one another’s wounds and help each other survive as best they can, bonded by their desperate situation, before continuing on with their mission.
Meanwhile, Rasp, a farmhand with magical firepowers and the ability to see ghosts is brought in front of Lord Vlayan, the brother of the deceased leader, Ivar. Rasp’s future is decided for him by the powers he must still learn to control. His hatred of the role he is forced into leads him to hastily learn control over some of his magic and he discovers he is a powerful necromancer. He becomes set on revenge for the peasants killed and the firy destruction wrought by Vlayan’s pet sorcerer and his apprentice.
Ilanya, a member of the personal guard of Lord Vlayan is struggling with the likelihood of her sister’s death. However, she must follow her orders and follow Lord Vlayan into the slaughter of his noble kinsfolk and crowning of himself King.

So much happens in such a short time in this fast-paced novella, as these story arcs converge, separate and reconverged and yet I immediately got a sense of backstory and did not feel disoriented, as can often happen when you are thrust into action without any buildup. The characterisation in this novella is deliciously sharp and grimy. Every disgusting detail is described with precision, and backstories are offered for the main characters, painting a vivid picture of these dregs of society.

“We’re naught but the dregs. The miserable scraps left over after the battle. The forgotten.”

Fans of grimdark fantasy should really give Thomas J. Devens’ work a try - you will not be sorry!

[Pete Reviews Books Good · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun novella full of blood, plots and brutality. I enjoyed it, especially the different ways the magic "power" was utilized, and it definitely made me want to continue reading even after the story was done. A harsh, cold, unforgiving world, I will definitely look forwards to going back to the Old Empire as more stories come out.

[James’ RocBottomReviews 🐦‍⬛ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A war ravished land will provide bloody paths to vengeance. Within brutality of magic & blades purpose may extinguish the anguished fire of the soul.

A savage novella gem! Heart wrenching & gruelling action plague its compelling characters. Gritty & terrific!

[The Reading Ruru (Kerry) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Necromancer and a group of survivors of a failed battle (all from different armies and the same battle as in the novella THE SCROUNGERS) join forces to go kill the last remaining Prince (now named himself king) — do they succeed, you'll have to read and find out.
A bitter sweet novella on the stupidity of war and that your enemy is so much like you.

[E. P. Soulless · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable, read the book in two sittings. A worthy accomplice to the Scroungers. I look forward to the next installment in the Vermin of the Old Empire!