A vampire hunter himself in his youth, Afari grew up a young black man on the mean streets of Harlem living an average life.
Somehow during that time he came across vampires and started teaching himself how to fight and kill them to protect himself and the people he cared about in his life. He fought and slayed many vampires.
He even tangled with Dracula himself and survived.
This gained him honorable respect from many street dwellers he saved who knew his secret. As the years went by, Jamal grew older and began to realize that he wasn't strong enough anymore to carry on his life as a vampire slayer and quietly retired.
He eventually learned how to play the jazz horn with exceptional skill and started to make a living off his talent. This peaceful life was proved short-lived due to Afari's later drug addiction and abuse. He was soon sent to a hospital to get over his problem.
After a while he got better and recovered. On a cold December night, he was discharged from the hospital. When he made it back to his home, he was attacked by a number of vampires who followed him and wanted to take revenge on him for their fellow vampires. When it looked as though he was about to die, he received unexpected help from a young orphan named Eric Brooks (who would grow up to be Blade), who was only 9 years old at the time.[1]
Together, with Eric's strength and Jamal's knowledge, they managed to kill them. Afari was amazed by Eric's power and resourcefulness, and he became inspired to train him to kill vampires and help others just like he did.
After learning more about Eric's past and his origins, Afari felt sympathy for him and decided to turn a new leaf and started to teach the underage vampire the secrets of slaying vampires.
They moved together to Lady Vanity's brothel in London where Eric's Mother Tara Brooks worked and also where she was killed by the vampire Deacon Frost, which gave young Eric special vampirific abilities.
As time went on and Eric grew into adulthood, Afari ended up becoming the closest thing to a father that Eric had ever known, but this period would end with sadness. Eric (now calling himself Blade after the bladed weapons that he used to kill vampires with), accidentally killed a man suffering from an illness called porphyria. Blade thought the man's disease was vampirism, and when he realized his mistake it was too late.
Scotland Yard found out and started looking for the killer. Afari helped his student escape the authorities by turning himself in, while at the same time he had Blade sail away to the United States. Blade would end up alone in New York City.
A few years later Blade had to return to London, alerted by Lady Vanity from the brothel that his mentor had gone missing. At first they both thought Afari had started using drugs again. They were wrong. Dracula had tracked him down and turned him into a vampire as revenge. The aged vampire hunter was now ironically a vampire himself. Blade tracked down Afari and the old man advised him to get away from him. Blade wouldn't listen and then Afari's bloodlust got uncontrollable and he attacked him. Blade reluctantly killed his old mentor in self-defense.[1]
Jamal Afari would later be resurrected by Dracula who needed his knowledge of vampiric lore.[2]
Ultimately Afari and Blade helped Dracula without knowing to resurrect an army of fallen vampires.[2]
Afari was last seen reconciling with Blade and contemplating the consequences of his current situation.[2
Turned my mans mentor into a blood sucking parasite.
