Piotr's patient with her confusion, because it's not like most Barrayarans understand much about galactic technology, either. Even he only knows so much -- knows what's necessary for this war.

"Not ours. Their weaponry." He shakes his head slightly, wishing he had a dismantled nerve disruptor or something on hand to demonstrate. "The weapons they use, they're all energy-based. Don't ask me how it works, I'm no technician. But they require charged power packs to function. And their scanning technology is such that they could pick up on that energy signature. We found that out the hard way -- very quickly."