Our heroes succeed in their quest to locate the Cult of the Black Flame. They hope to rescue the kidnapped children from human sacrifice at the hands of the Temple priests, or so they think.
Their final showdown does achieve rescuing the children, but our heroes have misunderstood the priests intention. Most of the priests sacrifice themselves in a ritual designed to bring the Black Flame himself into the world, and the host body is to be provided by one of the rescuers, Raimund Diestel. The child they thought who would be the sacrifice, Kamala, was only the conduit for the Dark Goddess' power into Diestel, and she will be the Black Flame's guide and spouse.
This story is the prequel to Lobster Johnson: The Burning Hand.
Story written by Mike Mignola and Chris Roberson, illustrated by Christopher Mitten, lettered by Clem Robins, and colored by Dave Stewart; cover illustration by Laurence Campbell.