i think that topology leads to sets, by the categorisation, but sets don't exist until you have a variety of elements with uniqueness first. and geometry goes second because you use geometry to build the phylogeny of sets. so maybe topology -> sets -> geometry like, you can't have geometry without polyhedra, or vectors, but you can have topology without sets. a circle is not a set, it is an element of a set. same can be said of a plane or a bounded surface. they form into a set of sets, but they precede the existence of sets. so i still say that topology is the root. topology delineates the form from the mold, the day from the night.