Kilo made it into the SDF's hand before he was ten, he trained with a small group of soldiers in secret until he officially enlisted when he turned 17 marking the start of his service.
He didn't see combat until he was 23 when he was deployed in LWS-937 system, the war in nearby systems had been going on for decades before it engulfed LWS-937. SDF forces were requested by the Thal'zar, Kyzon and Eklan forces. They were defending these systems from Yetrin and Velrhan forces, the Yetrin and Velrhan were hellbent on taking over this system due to the high resource density in the numerous asteroid belts.
LWS-937b gave him the first real taste of combat, he was lucky to survive the drop in unlike so many others. One of the largest cities had been taken over by Yetrin forces in mere hours, they slaughtered everything and everyone that stood in their way. The Eklan and Kyzon reinforced defensive lines while trying to gain territory back but the overwhelming Yetrin forces made it almost impossible until the SDF sent aid.
Dozens of drop ships relayed soldiers down to forward operating bases where they were then assigned into more specific positions. Kilo was unfortunately assigned to light armoured infantry with orders to move out in less than four hours. The march into the city was harrowing as pillars of smoke rose into the sky with the occasional ship booming over head, artillery shells from ships in orbit occasionally sent deafening roars through the streets, it was official, Kilo was heading into hell.