Talos was born to Vostro and Leera Dakora on 236401.29. The son of a Betazoid politcal attaché and an interior designer, Talos Dakora enjoyed a normal upper-middle class Betazoid childhood with his younger brother Hanek Dakora. From an early age he possessed an intelligent and inquisitive nature; a desire to know not only what and how things happened, but why as well. This became a problem as his Betazoid telepathy developed, as Talos was often scolded for 'listening' into the thoughts and emotions of others without their permission. Growing up Talos was very close to his mother, owing largely to the fact that Vostro was often offworld on various diplomatic expeditions for long periods of time. In 2373, Vostro and Leera unofficially seperated (an uncommon thing in Betazoid culture.). The reasons behind the split were not openly discussed, but shortly after, when Talos was introduced to his half-human sister Adara Bentley who was already a few years old, he was able to put two and two together.
In 2374 Talos' life changed forever. When the Federation forces defending Betazed were defeated and the Dominion descended on the planet, the Betazoid people were prepared for the worst. However, due to the Federation efforts elsewhere, the Dominion presence on the planet was never more than the minimum required to maintain a hold on the strategically important world. For most Betazoids life on occupied Betazed went on similarly to how it always had. The Dakoras were not so lucky. Vostro who was offworld at the time of the invasion, tried use the political back-channels available to him to aid the resistance on Betazed. One of his transmissions was intercepted and Leera Dakora was tortured and killed by Jem'Hadar enforcers in response. Talos, only 10 years old at the time, and Hanek witnessed it all.
It was a pivotal moment for Talos, one that influenced in many ways, the man that he would become. Eventually Betazed was liberated and the orphaned Talos and Hanek went to live with their maternal grandmother. Talos never forgot the helpless way he felt as he watched his mother taken from him and vowed to do everything in his power to never feel that way again. As soon as he came of age, Talos enlisted in the Starfleet Marine Corps, hoping that he could do his part to ensure that atrocities like his never happened to anyone else.
Through hard work and hardship induced determination, Talos managed to gain a spot in the SFMC's prestigious 1st Reconnaissance Battalion Force Recon Company (FORECON). He served on various ships and bases throughout his 9 year career as an enlisted man, participating in numerous direct action and deep reconnaissance missions with FORECON.
In 2391, Talos was selected as part of a Starfleet Mustang program and was admitted to Starfleet Academy, where he focused on Marine Intelligence.
