"Two at spread behind."
"Carriers—"
"Why haven't we got carriers?"
"Fighters with fixed—"
"Hundreds of them!"
Stone heard, and digested the ramble of information. He heard things described that he could not believe, and things that he had to accept.
"Wilson!" he barked. "Retreat! Retire."
"But look, Admiral—"
Admiral Stone took a deep breath and fought his dazzled mind into a semblance of order.
"Commodore Wilson," he snapped crisply, "official orders. You are to abandon this search. At once."