The three armed humanoid, Octopus, was seeking to gain complete control over the city's racketeers and set out to eliminate all of his rivals. One of these rival gang leaders was Linda Dale's Uncle John. After serving his time in jail, Uncle John sought to start a new crime free life with his niece, but the Octopus was still out to kill him. Linda asked Gary Preston to help protect them as the Flame, but the Octopus lured him into a trap. Using a reflector ray, he nearly killed the Flame. Luckily, he'd instructed Linda to take a formula that would give her the same powers that he possessed, transforming her into Flame Girl. She rescued him and they end up confronting the villain, who dies in the resulting explosion caused by the conflict.