but he was that big and at the end of this circle he came to the surface only thirty yards away and the man saw his tail out of water. it was higher than a big scythe blade and a very pale lavender above the dark blue water. it raked back and as the fish swam just below the surface the old man could see his huge bulk and the purple stripes that banded him. his dorsal fin was down and his huge pectorals were spread wide.