[quote=Webmaster]
I was thinking that if those spirits caused the whole of Equestria/everything else to fall to one of those (ie every village is affected in some way) and have multiple individuals around the world possess the ability to fulfill the requirements of bearer, then it would make sense. For example, every city/village/group would be under the influence of an anti-element. Of those, certain individuals are more capable of representing the element than others.
[/quote]

That unfortunately doesn't work with the gist of the story, as much as I like that idea. Basically, Gilda takes up Loyalty after the original elements accidentally destroy themselves, and she collects the shards of the other elements. She goes to the Tree of Harmony, finds out that she needs to go to a certain place, and she goes there. When there, she has to learn each trait in order for the shards to reassemble and the element to guide her to the bearer.

Maybe the spirits won't affect all of those in each element's village. Instead, some are only partially affected, convinced by peer pressure, although not blatant. They're sometimes truthful, sometimes lying, depending on their thoughts. That'll also make it harder for Gilda to try and find the element without having to figure out the trait.

Edit: It [i]is[/i] predestined. :P