Gerlach was a Mesan citizen and an agent of Manpower Incorporated. In the mid-19th Century PD, he and his partner, Giuseppe Ardmore, were part of an eleven-person team sent to New Denver on Earth with the goal of assassinating Beowulfan representative and anti-slavery lobbyist Aurèle Fairmont-Solbakken. The attempt was foiled by the Biological Survey Corps, which killed Gerlach and every other member of the team except Ardmore. (HHA6.3: BATB)