Val "The Vulture" Drefan

"*VIBE CHECK!"*

-Val, seconds before projectile vomiting

Val Drefan, superhero name "The Vulture", is a member of Detroit's newest superhero team, the Angels of Detroit, along with their identical triplet Flare Drefan. Their powers are based on vultures.

## History

Val was raised with their triplets, Flare and Owen, in a middle-class suburban family in upstate New York. Their parents were extreme fundamentalist Mormons, but outside of their religious inoculation, their upbringing was rather average. They enjoyed video games and play-fighting with their siblings, and were rarely lonely despite their lack of friends outside the family. During the summer they attended church camp, and during the school year they were involved with youth group. By the age of twelve, they were disillusioned with organized religion, but not in a particularly deep or meaningful way; they just thought it was "boring and stupid".

At age twelve, they are their siblings were involved in a car accident. Their mother was driving them to school and the car hit a patch of ice and fishtailed into a tree. No one was badly injured, but it was traumatic enough for them to start manifesting their powers. From that moment on, the three of them shared a telepathic bond. Shortly after, they started to grow wings as well. At first it was just small lumps on their backs, but as time went on the lumps elongated and grew feathers and became nearly impossible to hide.

At first the triplets agreed to keep their powers secret, knowing that their religious fundamentalist parents would reject them if they knew, but as their wings became larger and more difficult to conceal, they started to crack. Finally, one night when they were fourteen, Owen told their parents.

Their parents brought the three of them down to the basement, where Val figured they would probably get yelled at or maybe even hit. Instead, they tied the triplets down and doused them in gasoline. Val didn't understand what they were doing until they lit the match.

Owen was the first to go up in flames, and she died shortly thereafter. In the time afforded to them while their parents were busy with Owen, Flare and Val used their superpowers to escape. The trauma of watching Owen die caused them to manifest more superpowers; Val developed the ability to speak to ghosts, projectile vomit with enough force to shatter concrete, turn invisible, and digest any substance with no ill effects.

Val and Flare escaped to New York City, where they lived for the next four years. They slept in an abandoned building and used their newly developed superpowers to steal what they needed to survive (as well as whatever else they wanted). Eventually they met and befriended the hero team in Detroit, including Slipstream, who introduced the duo to memes. Through Slipstream's advice, they started to frequent the NASP office in NYC, and eventually enrolled in the Hero Academy. After they completed their training, they were placed in Detroit, and participated in the formation of the Angels of Detroit.

## Appearance

Val is tall and lanky, with pale skin and short black hair. They have dark wings like that of a turkey vulture, with a wingspan of about seventeen feet, and their fingers taper into talons rather than fingernails. Their eyes are bright blue, and they have a dusting of freckles, a beaky nose, and slight buck teeth. Their wardrobe consists entirely of clothes shoplifted from Hot Topic, usually accompanied by combat boots and poor eye contact.

Their hero costume is inspired by plague doctors, though more colorful and significantly more aerodynamic. They wear a plague mask missing the bottom half of the beak, to allow them to use their vomit powers. Their leggings are rust-colored, and they wear a dark top that accommodates their wings. They also wear knee-high lace-up boots.

## Powers and Abilities

* Iron Stomach
* Telepathy
* Comprehend Spirits
* Winged Flight
* Concealment
* Vomit Damage
* Internal Compartment
* Digestive Stretching

## Relationships

### Flare Drefan

Flare is Val's triplet and best friend. They are extremely close and have been since childhood; however, in recent months, they've grown more distant. Flare has been moving on and building themself a better life, while Val feels left behind and trapped in their trauma. Val is too stubborn and emotionally inept to talk to Flare about their feelings, so instead an awkward tension has built up between the two of them that neither one knows how to address.

### Owen Drefan

Owen is the third Drefan triplet, who is now a ghost. After a four year separation, she has reunited with Val and Flare, but their dynamic is deeply and irreversibly changed. On a subconscious level, Val resents Owen for showing up and bringing the past with her just as Val was beginning to create a new life for themself. On a conscious level they're glad to have her back, but don't understand why they feel so awful when they're around her.

### Shannon Miller

Shannon is the team's boss and the triplet's unofficial adopted mother. She also happens to be the only person that Val has a stable relationship with at the moment.

### "Gerard"

Before his death, Val was not particularly close with "Gerard", but they did have a playful camaraderie that mostly consisted of Val daring him to hit them and him complying. The two of them roughhoused on multiple occasions, and Val felt slightly more of a connection to him than the rest of the team. Now they're grieving him, but they're also grieving what his death signified. It's a reminder that their new life isn't safe; that they didn't escape loss and horror just by escaping their parents.

### Aleph

Val and Aleph share a tenuous bond after their bowling misadventure. Though they haven't interacted much, Val considers them a friend; they hope to continue their bowling shenanigans and grow closer as a team.