Rust Belt

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Task force operation connecting BDRTAC, FISA, and SWAT to stop the exfiltration of key Los Locos targets fleeing across an ancient underground tunnel to Tijuana.

Description of "Rust Belt"

Costa Vino Border Reserve
Group(s)	Los Locos
Location	Costa Vino Border Reserve, Costa Vino
Time	14:30

Rust Belt is the twelfth mission in Ready or Not.

Mission Brief

Team Lead: Listen up, everybody. We’ve had a location confirmed of an active coyote stash house in Muerto Mesa. We’ve been following some leads for a while. A source just confirmed that the Los Locos are using this particular network and planning a mass evacuation tonight. We’re talking people, products, and cash.

We’ve been given access to the video feeds from the Border Patrol drone and surveillance is underway. The chopper is fuelled and ready for my signal. We have no time to lose here.

The good news is we’ve got aerial imagery of the site. There’s a long road that leads to a ranch the locals call Rancho Del Suenos. Ironic right? Who says these losers don’t have a sense of humor. The den starts in the backyard, but we need to go through the house to get there. I doubt they’ve got any traps set up, but we need to move with as much caution as we do urgency.

The bad news is that once we hit the tunnels, we’re blind as bats. We’ve got no idea how deep they go, how many branches there are, or where they lead. I know we’ve dealt with coyotes before, and they rarely give us any trouble, but we’re dealing with Los Locos, too. We need to be prepared for anything.

We need to bring as many suspects back as we can. I want a small team to sweep the outbuildings and then set up shop in the ranch, just in case. With everything that we know is being moved through these tunnels, we know the Los Locos won’t hesitate to shoot. They are moving a lot of things at once, so it’s going to be busy down there. We need to bring as much and as many people back up as we can. The coyotes rarely give us trouble, and the immigrants are mostly just looking in the wrong place for a better life. Cuff them and move on. We have no idea how many people are down there, but intel says it’s one of their main tunnels.

I don’t think I have to remind you that lethal force is only to be used in self-defense or to prevent a situation from escalating. We need to communicate on this one because we’re all going to be blind. Clear details and no chatter. I don’t like sending you all underground. Get in, do your jobs, and get back out.

Any questions?

Good, now get to work.

Objectives

Main Objectives

• Bring Order to Chaos
  • Arrest or neutralize any contact at the scene.
• Rescue All of the Civilians
  • Detain any unarmed contacts at the scene.

Soft Objectives

• Reported Access Tunnel Barge
  • Located a barge in the underground cavern that Los Locos use as means to traffic goods aross the border.
• Reported Confiscated Passports
  • Located confiscated Mexican passports in the ranch house.

Media Transcript

Please note that the transcript may differ from the actual audio.

Informant Call

The following statement was provided by a trusted informant who shall remain nameless. Below is a transcript from a phone call with said informant this morning, September 29, 2025.

Informant: Can you hear me?

Detective Blake: Yeah, I can hear you. What have you got for me?

Informant: I’ve got something big, but uhh, I’m gonna need immunity or whatever because I’m like risking my life telling you this.

Detective Blake: It’s the same deal as always, but you know I’m fair. If it’s good, we’ll talk when you’re finished.

Informant: Alright, well, this is good. I’ve been par… watching this place, a ranch.

Detective Blake: A ranch?

Informant: Yeah, man, a ranch, but hear me out. It’s a front. The real deal is what goes inside and what happens in the backyard. They’re running everything through this place, man. People, drugs, cash, you name it, it’s passing through.

Detective Blake: A coyote den?

Informant: This isn’t just a coyote den; I wouldn’t risk myself for one of them. This is THE coyote den. It's the primary shuttle point for the Los Locos into the city and back down into Mexico.

Detective Blake: I’m listening.

Informant: Good, because that’s not it. They are moving shit tonight — big things. I’ve seen ‘em preparing stuff for days now. The streets are buzzing with it. I don’t know what, I really don’t, but if you wanna shut down a tunnel and get your hands on some big Los Locos names, I’d get myself a team and head out into the desert.

Detective Blake: You got an address?

Informant: Yeah, it’s way out in the lowlands, on the Costa Vino border. A ranch called Rancho Del Suenos.

Detective Blake: Cute name.

Informant: What?

Detective Blake: Nothing. Just carry on.

Informant: Right, right, so it’s this ranch over by the border. Derelict sort of place. At least it was the last time I was there, but that’s just a front. They process everything in the house, but the tunnels they start in the back. There’s this river underground, and they have a whole functional dock set-up that they use to move things quickly. But you gotta be careful; it’s a fucking labyrinth down there.

Detective Blake: This is good. Keep talking.

Informant: What do you mean good? This is a gold mine for you. What more do you want from me, man?!

Detective Blake: I want real details. Something that is actually going to help us.

Informant: Details? I’m giving them to you on a plate!

Detective Blake: What are we going to find there? Where should we look? Have you got a route through the tunnels? Are there any traps?

Informant: I don’t know any of that. I was there ages ago and got taken in and taken out. All I remember is there’s lots of branching tunnels, but only one main way through. They won’t have it trapped on account of the traffic moving through. They’ve got weapons down there, so as soon as they know you’re coming, things will change.

Detective Blake: This is good. We’ll take a look.

Informant: It’s more than good. I give you my word. It’s the real deal. So, um, how about my immunity?

Detective Blake: We’ll see. If this checks out like you say, I don’t think that will be a problem. Now, you’d better get going; this has been a long call. Dump the phone, and I’ll get a new one to you. I’ll be in touch.

Media

	Aerial Drone Image Border Patrol Aerial Drone image with a thermal preview, showing a large number of individuals in the compound’s yard.
	Surveillance Photograph Telephoto image of the barn, near the entrance to the compound.

The Map

Sketch of the underground tunnel complex

Evidence

• Cartel Text: A text from an unknown number to the phones owner. LSPD Search And Rescue conducted an operation to locate the “crying child” as mentioned within the text, but were unsuccessful. Further expeditions are planned to travel up and down the subterranean river system.
• Watchlist: Written in Spanish, the list depicts border patrol routes and times in the area. Some notes have been made about various guards, detailing their appearances. One or two have been crossed off, having been “dealt with”. Some aerial images from a drone are also attached, with markings depicting where the guards walk to, from their vehicles.
• A Distant Age: Found in a collapsed section of the ancient caverns. Upon closer inspection, the rock contained unique carvings, ones that told tales of man killing man, a large storm washing away the ancient people, and an extreme suffering.

Trivia

• The Development Name for this mission was "Coyote". It can still be seen in the descriptions of certain earnable cosmetics and in the description for the "Way Out West" achievement
  • The term "Coyote" is used to refer to Mexican migrant smugglers that help people cross the US-Mexico border for a fee. The term itself comes from the Spanish name of the North American Wild Dog, the Canis Latrans.
• The sign above the collapsed tunnel reads “Dejad toda esperanza, los que entráis” meaning “Leave all hope, ye who enter”.
• This mission is heavily inspired on a similar scenario from the movie Sicario.
• The cave paintings and engravings would suggest the tunnel used to be an ancient Mexican building.
• Since Los Locos are fleeing to Tijuana, it can be assumed that Los Suenos is located where San Diego is located in real-life.
• There is a bug in the map, where it would get stuck in loading in the 0:00:01 part, it would also be listed as mod map in the loading.