The only place I haven't looked is after the borderlands. And I can't cross it because there appears to be no way to attack the dogs that inhabit it.

well your on the right track just go through the Badlands and he is in the temple on the floating isle past the bridge you find after exiting the Badlands be there.

As for how to attack when the game switches to combat mode you should see a picture of your party members and a small bar with three spots. Now these spots will fill up as time passes and allow for a stronger attack based on how many bars are filled, so first spot is a quick but weak attack,second is a stronger attack then the first and of course the third is much stronger then the first and second but you risk taking more hits in the mean time since, ect. now to actually launch the attack you just click on your character's portrait and then click your target,unless you want to heal or use a "magic" based attack then you select the proper icons on the menu that pops up and then click on a target.