Kurda Smahlt

Kurda Smahlt is a Vampire Prince candidate who supports unity between the Vampires and Vampaneze. He implies that he was chosen as a candidate for his intelligence as opposed to the brawn and valor which Vampires value. He betrays the Vampires in effort to prevent the War of the Scars (by uniting the two clans again), and is executed close to the end of book six, The Vampire Prince. He has blond hair and blue eyes (not to mention the fact he is very handsome) with three red scars on his left cheek (a mark left by the Vampaneze when he was discussing peace between the clans). Kurda comes back to life as a little person called Harkat Mulds after striking a deal with Desmond Tiny.

Vampire Mountain
Kurda meets Darren Shan (character) when he is fleeing from the other vampires who are bombarding him with questions. He becomes a close friend of Darren and takes him on a tour of Vampire Mountain. He opposes strongly when the princes suggest the Trials of Initiation for Darren, and he is also the one to warn Darren that the price for faliure in the trials, is death.

Trials of Death
Kurda doesn't have a big part to play in the first half of the book.

He manages to convince the princes to let Darren have extra time to recover after his brush with death. And when helping Darren escape, after failing his fourth trial, they bump into a group of Vampaneze. In an ensuing fight Kurda turns on his own kind and stabs Gavner Purl when he thinks Darren isn't around. But Darren sees and then flees the scene, meaning to tell the other vampires about Kurda's murder. He falls into a stream, and despite Kurda's best efforts to save him, trying to convince him that if he comes back, he'll promise to tell Darren why he had really killed Gavner. Darren refuses to listen, saying that he would rather die in honor, than live in the hands of a traitor, and he makes the death sign, then he gets washed away.

The Vampire Prince
Darren makes a surprise appearance during Kurda's investiture as a vampire prince and tells the Princes and all the other vampires in the room about Kurda murdering Gavner. Kurda doesn't deny or confirm what Darren said. He is then taken for questioning and after he's been proved guilty he is dropped on the stakes in the Hall of Death untill he is dead.

Warning: Complete Plot Spoilers!
Harkat Mulds was in fact Kurda in his previous life and that he was created by Desmond Tiny for the purpose of protecting Darren. He then nobly lets Harkat live out his life and his soul flies to Paradise.

Appearances

 * "Vampire Mountain"
 * "Trials of Death"
 * "The Vampire Prince"
 * "Hunters of the Dusk" (mentioned only)
 * "The Lake of Souls"