The two of them flew along the surface of the shield. With no restrictions outside, they moved extremely fast. Strange even opened a portal along the way, and they quickly arrived at the other side of Apocalypse's Domain.
"Where is this?" Strange asked.
"An entrance and exit, more or less," Schiller said. "The Green Lantern fleet came out from here before. I'm guessing they'll send some ships to patrol the area afterward."
"Because of Asgard?"
"Exactly. After suffering a defeat, Batman will only become more cautious. Asgard's surprise attack was truly devastating. Apokolips's shield might not withstand the Bifrost at full power. The best option is to send troops directly to patrol. Even if they can only hold Asgard back temporarily, it would greatly diminish the impact of their blitzkrieg."
Strange nodded. Fighting away from home was already disadvantageous, and after being defeated before they had even secured a foothold, Batman had to adjust his strategy. He could not afford to press ahead recklessly. The priority was to prevent the enemy from pursuing their victory, yet Asgard was particularly good at expanding an advantage. To keep the other side from snowballing, they could only pull back their lines.
"Looks like they don't have much chance of winning," Strange said.
"Not necessarily. Batman is very good at seizing opportunities. Besides, we may look brave over here, but we have very little experience dealing with defeat. If the other side catches an opening and inflicts a wave of losses, there's no telling how quickly we'll be able to adjust."
Strange actually shared that concern. Their side only seemed to work so well together because they had benefited from Asgard's support this time. Asgard itself was a complete combat system, so it naturally held an advantage against the enemy's mixed forces.
But what