I don’t know if this has been asked yet, so I’ll ask now:
Are Iterators a part of the great cycle? Or do they experience the same death and rebirth as the player/slugcats do? Or more generally: what types of things are a part of the cycle, and why?
Iterators live far too long and are far too karmically aligned to have their existence scattered through multiple strands, they tend to really only exist on a single one. But they're still material creatures, and still are a part of the cycle
Just... unborn, in a way.
Strands split and branch off and die due to rapid activity in dreams- like player deaths or karma gains. But iterators don't really do any of that, their strands never branch until they're diseased or near death, and if not for their taboos, would be able to slip away in an instant, like pulling a loose thread out from a sweater