The penultimate plague is one of darkness. This would be particularly poignant for the Egyptians for they worshipped the sun god Ra, so the blotting out of all light would be a demonstration that their god had no power. Complete darkness can anyway be very frightening and can almost cling to you. This went on for three days, and everything ground to a halt, except the places where the Israelites lived.
Pharaoh summoned Moses and told him and all his people to go and worship, but they had to leave their flocks behind. Moses refused, because they needed the sheep and goats to make sacrifices. Note that the sacrificial system of the Law had not been introduced at this point, but offering sacrifices was a common feature of worship.
Pharaoh is having none of this and tells Moses never to appear before him again, which indeed he will not.
After this will come the plague on the firstborn. It is puzzling why the demand was just to go into the desert to worship, when the goal was complete freedom from slavery.
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