Telek was a leading Cardassian Gul by the mid-2380s, the son of the elder Gul Telek, who had been prefect of Rakantha Province during the Bajoran Occupation. In 2388, Telek served with Legate Temel and Gul Feris to convince Castellan Elim Garak to not prosecute Cardassian soldiers for war crimes during the Occupation. Unsuccessful, they resigned. He later served under Legate Renel.
Shortly afterwards, Telek pieced together a shameful secret about himself. The public admission of "Project Enigma" forced Telek to realize not only that he was half-Bajoran, but that as a child his father and the University of the Union subjected him to gene therapy to alter his Bajoran genes to appear Cardassian. In realizing this, the younger Telek faced the crushing shame of not being the son his father had wanted, and that he was not the man he thought he was. Telek then surprised Castellan Garak at his private residence - at first seeming to threaten the castellan but then simply to be angry at the man responsible for the inquiry into Cardassian war crimes, which included what the later Telek senior had done. Garak, after realizing Telek did not want to assassinate him, realized what Telek was and the help he needed. Garak had him taken away by his private security to be taken care of. (DS9 novel: Enigma Tales)