Different Wavelengths

Silence Ain't My Strong Suit

Warning: This chapter contains some Starscream abuse.

Sir Soundwave walked through the halls of the Interceptor (or rather, it was the Nemesis), looking around anxiously. After confirming that the coast was clear he looked down at his chest. But it wasn't Laserbeak he was checking up on. In a gap between the minicon and his carrier were the three humans, hiding in plain sight. The only way they could be discovered was if a taller bot was looking carefully. Thankfully, there were only a few bots that towered over Sir Soundwave.
Having exhausted his actual voicebox, Sir Soundwave used the recreation of his voice that he used in case he was either out of samples or needed to clarify something. While he hated how it made him sound autotuned, he preferred that over an aching vocalizer.

"Little bros. Status."
"We're alright for now, Soundwave", Jack told him. "But we should keep conversation at a minimum so that the other Decepticons don't get suspicious."
"Agreed."
The Nemesis still had the same interior layout as the Interceptor, so it was easy to find his, or rather his doppelganger's, personal quarters. But in order to not arouse suspicion but opening an unauthorized ground bridge, Sir Soundwave opted to just walk and hope for the best.
From around a corner, Sir Soundwave saw a patrol of Vehicons approaching his position. He shuddered, but simmered down when Miko patted his chassis. "Remember what we talked about", she whispered to him. "Like a living statue!"
He nodded and began to prep his facade. He had been briefed on the usual personality of this world's TIC, which amounted to 'quiet cryptid'. Sir Soundwave straightened and posture and began to walk a little more stiffly. He let his arms slack a bit and he looked straight ahead, not wanting even a second of eye contact to give him away.

He passed by the Vehicons, who glanced at him. "Commander Soundwave", one addressed him, though he kept walking. Soundwave barely paid him any mind. He was almost in his room anyway.
It was just another turn and soon Sir Soundwave slipped through the door and locked it. He was taken aback when he saw the inside. Everything was clean, yes, but the room itself had only a berth, a small monitor on a work desk, a place for Laserbeak to roost, and a few energon cubes. What kind of bot lives like this?!?
Still, it was better than nothing. Sir Soundwave reached into the gap near his chest and carefully extracted the children, placing them on the nearby desk.

Miko stretched her body. "Finally! I was starting to feel stiff." Raf fixed his glasses and looked up at Sir Soundwave. "Alright, so let's recap real quick", he said. "You're saying that you're from another dimension, correct?"
Sir Soundwave nodded.
"And in this other dimension, the Decepticons are the good guys trying to protect Earth and save Cybertron, while the Autobots are evil and want to destroy everything."
Another nod. Miko butted in this time.
"And you think that all this was because one of your friends touched a cube you guys found?"
A final nod.

"So what's it like in Jasper, Nevada?", Asked a voice clip of some travel agency advertisement Soundwave had recorded. "Not too different, honestly", Jack responded. "Just a role switch." Soundwave sat down in a chair by the desk and took it all in. He was still in disbelief that he was in an alternate reality and was feeling anxious by the nano-klik. Laserbeak fluttered his wings and trilled in an attempt to soothe his carrier's quickening pulse. Sir Soundwave activated the fake voice again.
"Soundwave: Not home. These Decepticons: Not Soundwave's bros. Conclusion: Return to original dimension by any means necessary."
"But how?", Jack asked him.
"Solution: unavailable at this time. Action to take: Perform research in free time. Current objective: ensure safety of little homies in the meantime."
Miko had a eureka moment. "What if we asked our Autobots to help?"

Sir Soundwave shook his head. "Soundwave of this world: an enemy to Autobots. Autobots: would not trust me. Soundwave: does not trust Autobots either. Apologies."
Miko pouted. "Well, I don't know what else to tell ya. You're gonna be stuck here for a while anyway." Soundwave dropped his helm. "... acknowledged."
He absentmindedly caressed Laserbeak's wings to ease his stress. But then he made a startling revelation.
"Soundwave: Taken from his dimension.", He noted.
"Yeah, we went over that already", Jack said.
"Query: What is the current location of this world's Soundwave then?" At first the kids were confused but Raf's eyes quickly widened. "You mean... Our Soundwave might be in YOUR world?"
Sir Soundwave gripped his helm in his hands. No. No, not like this. If that other Soundwave was like what he heard, then the Decepticons were in deep trouble. His spark raced as he thought about all the terrible things that the imposter was doing to his friends...
Laserbeak kept trilling but even then, Sir Soundwave was still on edge.
He stood up and extended his hand to the children. "Soundwave: gotta bounce. Operation: Locate information on how to return home. Little bros: must remain hidden until Soundwave returns."
Miko pouted. "Why does every single mission have us stay back?" The kids climbed onto Sir Soundwave's servos and he placed them carefully onto the floor. "Human homies: will be safe in this room. Evil Decepticons: Unlikely to enter unannounced. Soundwave: will return. Please wait."