It's a grey cloud episode.

That's what Emily Bett Rickards told me yesterday on the Vancouver set of Arrow about Arrow Season 3 Episode 9.

As we've seen in the preview photos, the winter finale will find Oliver finally facing off with Ra's Al Ghul and fighting (shirtless) on the top of a mountain. 

There's "impending danger and a grey cloud," Rickards said of the installment, adding:

"It’s really a scary, kind of daunting episode. I saw the mid-season trailer and it astonished me. It looks really intense, but it looks kind of beautiful at the same time... the beauty is hidden by this shadow, this darkness."

Following those eerie words from Rickards, I sat down with series star Stephen Amell to get his take on where tonight's episode takes us in the latter half of Arrow Season 3, along with the challenges of shooting such an epic fight scene.

When might we see Oliver's ex again, who we met on The Flash Season 1 Episode 8? And what about that child?!? Let's see what Amell had to say..

Arrow Season 3 airs Wednesday at 8/7c on The CW. 

Jim Halterman is the West Coast Editor of TV Fanatic and the owner of JimHalterman.com. Follow him on Twitter.