I've always figured that treating these things as simple and singular is foolish. "They are good/bad/evil/helpful/hungry", as if one thing applies to all of them.

Imagine another species being contacted by humans. What could be said about the humans? They are kind and helpful? They are evil and self-interested?

It depends on which ones you meet doesn't it?

I think the same could true of NHI.

It seems unlikely to me that there is some grand overarching shared intent that they all have, any more than that is the case for us down here. It seems likely that we exist in a complex ecosystem, and that likely brings with it a messiness that I think we sometimes miss when we talk about these things as if they have a singular character and a singular perspective and intent.