The Narcotic being under construction at Valetta Shipyard.
Spaceships share lots of different purposes. For some people they're simple tools, used to destroy and rule. In most cases, they're just meant to be a protection from space's wilderness. For others they're a place they call home.
While many ships suggest their purpose on its affiliation, size or design, nobody can say for sure, what The Narcotic was built for. The massy shape, thick hull and variety of defense turrets may indicate, that its pilot is either in special need of safety, puts high interst in powerful combat ability, or purely for intimidation. Either way, considering that The Narcotic is most often sighted in deep space environment, the phrase "survival of the fittest" may explain its increased survivability.
There's not much known about its actual output. However, its design obviously hints Outcast influence. Wherefore it was likely constructed on Valetta Shipyard. According to rumors, an artificial intelligence was primarily involved in the ship's planning. Regarding the vessel's size of a battlecruiser, its construction time must have been around a few months. Furthermore, the construct of this customized spacecraft must have cost a fortune. It is said, that its owner used to be a known equipment dealer in New York, having successfully ran his business among familiar faces like "Cody's". Insiders say, that they were blamed for breaking Liberty's cartel law by having price agreements with each others. His accumulated wealth could explain the costly financing of his remarkable construction project.
Rare sightings allowed giving an approximate picture of The Narcotic's ship details. In-depth scans suggest its hull plating being exceptionally strong for a ship of its size. Experts estimate it on being almost twice as strong as a battleship's plating. Moreover, its visible defense systems offer a high variety; heavy turrets, such as anti-capital Cerberus and a pair of battleship turrets, aswell as common cruiser weaponry, it's also equipped with a few anti-snubcraft guns and missiles, which are a rather uncommon sight on vessels larger than gunboats. The ship's background does also imply some of its weaponry being of maltese origin.
Besides a pair of landing bays located at the ship's center, which appear to be mandatory for a battlecruiser, scan results showed a weak power signature which is only caused by cloaking devices. However, there exist no records of the ship ever having made use of a cloaking device, which remains somewhat of a mystery given that it appears to possess a device no matter what. For good measure, The Narcotic seems to have an advanced battleship scanner installed, which allows it to make use of long range scannings, aswell as taking early risk assessments.
Its seven powerful rear engines grant fast traveling at decent speed. In addition with a reliable Outcast thruster, codename "Cheetah", the ship's evasive maneuver are out of this world. Rumors say, that The Narcotic can't be steered by human hand. Which leads one to suspect that, the ship must be ruled by some artificial navigation system.
It was once reported, that The Narcotic made use of illusory effects, which produced holograms faking the ship's destruction. This however is by all means a rumor, since such technique is simply impossible to recreate. Though, fact is, that up to this day, no debris of The Narcotic has ever been found, which let's people in the believe that this mysterious vessel is nothing but a phantom.
So is its crew. There exists no secure source, which has recordings about The Narcotic's crewmembers. Fact is, that a ship of this size must be maintained by at least a three-digit number of people. While it's know that there exist AI controlled ships of cruiser size, The Narcotic would be impossible to be ran by a single artificial intelligence.
It can be speculated that the crew consists of a wild mix of freelancers, outlaws, outcasts and alike. Or even lawfuls who gave up on their past lifes. As the Order considers The Narcotic being of alien nature, it's reasonable to presume, that there's even infectees aboard it. Though, apart from a few uncommon energy signatures, there's nothing nomadic about the ship on a first glance.
"The more I hear about this ship, the less I want to believe of its existance. I do not hope to ever cross its path. Maybe once in a life time... if you understand."
Unknown
"The Narcotic embodies madness. I remember. I was in space when I heard a soft whimpering in my head. Colors flashed. Not sure if I were dreaming, I was inside. My eyes saw hazy shapes rushing past me in a blur. They are, they were alive. Slipping past me disturbed. Barely human. One of them hits me. I am knocked to the ground. I fall over and taste the steel of a corridor. The shapes did not pay me any attention, they just kept floating around like bees in a hive. I closed my eyes. Rush back to reality. I am still on the ground and dark matter is filling my lungs. I am in the corridor and spit is choking me or is it the lasergun barrel. Death or Madness, they ask me. I tried to answer, but instead of words, blood ran out of my mouth. Crashing reality is crumbling around with me. Reality is hard to capture. As I taste the metallic barrels of guns. I sail further away close to the corridor's end, it is beautiful. I draw closer towards the exit. I could not leave. The children are sleeping. The monsters are coming. Blood covers my throat. I like to stay. Madness embodies me."