Vanessa Brooks

Vanessa Brooks is a fictional vampire and a minor recurring character featured in comic books published by Marvel Comics. She is part of the mainstream Marvel Universe and is also associated with the Blade film franchise by New Line Cinema. The character first appeared in Tomb of Dracula, Volume 1 #13 in October, 1973. In her early appearances, the character was named Tara Brooks. Vanessa Brooks appeared in the 1998 film adaptation of Blade where she was played by actress Sanaa Lathan. The character also appeared in episodes of Blade: The Series. She appeared in episode 1x06, "Delivery", where she was played by actress Alana Husband.

Marvel Comics
Vanessa Brooks was born Tara Brooks in the United States. She was married to an Englishman named Lucas Cross, who was a member of an occult secret society called the Order of Tyrana. Tara became pregnant with Lucas' child, but had a very difficult labor. She took up residence at a brothel owned by a woman named Madame Vanity. A physician was summoned to attend to her, but the physician in question was a powerful vampire named Deacon Frost. Deacon fed from Vanessa as she was in the midst of giving birth. The process introduced an enzyme into her bloodstream, that altered the child on a genetic level. The baby, Eric Brooks, was born with all of the physical characteristics of a vampire, but harbored none of their weaknesses. In time he would be defined as a dhampir and take on the code name Blade. The experience of giving birth to a supernatural being was too trying on Vanessa however, and she died in labor.

Blade (1998)
Vanessa Brooks was a young woman who grew up in Detroit, Michigan during the late 1940s and 1950s. As an adult, she married a man named Robert Brooks and became pregnant with his child. During the ninth month of her pregnancy in 1967, Vanessa was attacked by the vampire Deacon Frost. He turned her into a vampire, but as Vanessa "died", she gave birth to her son Eric, who was born with certain preternatural traits. He had the power and thirst of a vampire, but could exist in the sun without fear of harm. Afterward, the baby was taken elsewhere, and Vanessa became part of Deacon Frost's brood. He remained with him as his concubine for many years.

Decades later, the adult Eric Brooks, now a vampire hunter calling himself Blade, began fighting up against the forces of Deacon Frost, who wanted the blood of the "Daywalker" as part of a ritual to gain the power of a vampire God known as La Magra. Blade was captured and brought to Deacon Frost's stronghold. He managed to escape, but while there, found his mother, who tried to encourage him into becoming part of Frost's pack. Blade was saddened, but knew what he had to. He impaled Vanessa with a piece of broken bone, thus setting her free.