reminds me of an old sci fi book that had soldiers with microwave laser rifles (masers) powered by a backpack that was in itself a biological power reactor (created by splicing dna from creatures and bacteria that generated electrical currents).
the whole concept was illogical but the battles were fun.
now, about a decade later, seeing all the advances, it makes one wonder.
BTW, didnt nikola tesla say that he had invented some sort of death ray before his death?
That guy did amazing stuff in his life, wouldnt count him out of the race even if he's dead.