I like my attempt at describing the nature of a/pep just a bit too much to consign it to the reddit comments section for all time, so:
I feel like there's often a lot of misunderstanding regarding how Kemetics view a/pep. We seem to be characterized as 'fearing' it, or 'pearl-clutching' about the 'evil' of it or whatever, but that's not accurate to the worldview there.
A/pep isn't evil. It exists outside of morality. It's more accurate to liken it to a representative of entropy--it's a force that seeks to unravel the entire cosmos and everything in it. It stands opposite to the act of creation, it represents the end of all things. A/pep 'winning' would look like an empty universe, everything brought to absolute zero. This force is a part of our universe, and we (and the ancients) very much do acknowledge it, but it's not something to communicate or collaborate with, because there is nothing to be gained from it. It has nothing to say to us, nor us to it, because we're diametrically opposed: we exist, and it is a force of nonexistance.
Characterizing it as representative of 'chaos' or 'destruction' therefore falls a bit flat--even destruction is a form of creation, it turns things into new things (even if those things are often horrible). It's sort of like that old saying, "the opposite of love is not hate, it is apathy". A/pep is that apathy. It is Nothingness. A forest fire is a devastation that can bring about new growth, but the 'destruction' a/pep brings is final.
The netjeru fight a/pep each night because this uncreating force is overwhelming and tireless, and must be constantly beaten back in order for existence to continue. In a way, you can see it as choosing every single day to continue surviving, even when forces in the universe try relentlessly to grind us down. That's why we deface its name--it's not fear, it's not like it's fucking Voldemort, it's just that each strike against it is a small effort we put towards keeping the lights on. The ancients believed words have power, and even invoking its name gives it a tiny mote of energy--and it doesn't need our help.
tl;dr the concept of a/pep is too often likened to a more binary 'good vs evil' system when it's basically just a force of entropy. A/pep is the concept that all things end and we have to make a choice to not give into that. You can't befriend something that is opposed to your entire existence.